Services Stocks in India

What are services stocks?

The services sector, in the NSE classification, groups together businesses that move goods and people and that support other businesses: logistics and courier companies, shipping and airlines, port, airport and toll-road operators, engineering services firms, and commercial services such as staffing, facility management and security.

Many of these companies grow with trade and consumption - more goods manufactured and bought means more freight to move - and with investment in transport infrastructure.

What moves services stocks

Trade and freight volumes

Manufacturing output, e-commerce deliveries and exports and imports drive volumes for logistics companies and ports.

Fuel costs

Diesel and aviation fuel are major costs for transport companies.

Infrastructure build-out

New highways, dedicated freight corridors, ports and airports change how goods move and create opportunities for operators.

Employment and outsourcing

Staffing and facility management companies grow as businesses outsource non-core work and formal employment rises.

What to check before investing in services stocks

Volume growth

Tonnes, containers, shipments or passengers handled - the basic measure of a transport business.

Asset-light vs asset-heavy

Some companies own trucks, ships or ports; others coordinate without owning assets. Asset-light businesses usually earn higher returns on capital but have less control.

Margins and pricing

Whether the company can pass on fuel and wage increases to customers.

Risks to know

Transport and logistics are cyclical and fuel-sensitive; airlines in particular can swing between profit and loss quickly. Staffing and services companies depend on the job market and operate on thin margins.

How to invest in services stocks

1. 1

   Open a demat and trading account

   A demat account holds your shares electronically; a trading account lets you buy and sell them. With GoPocket you can open both online in a few minutes with your PAN, Aadhaar and bank details.

2. 2

   Add money

   Transfer funds to your trading account by UPI or net banking.

3. 3

   Research the company

   Pick a company from the list above and open its page to see its share price chart, financial performance and shareholding before you decide. Compare it with other services stocks on business quality, debt, growth and valuation.

4. 4

   Place your order

   Search for the stock in the GoPocket app or web platform, choose the quantity, and place a delivery order to hold the shares in your demat account. A limit order lets you set the most you are willing to pay.

5. 5

   Track and review

   Follow the company's quarterly results and news. Spreading your money across several companies and sectors reduces the damage if one investment goes wrong.

Terms used on this page

LTP

Last traded price - the price at which the stock last changed hands. The figure below it is the change from the previous day's close.

Market cap

Market capitalisation: share price multiplied by the number of shares issued. It measures a company's size in the market and is shown here in rupees crore (1 crore = 1,00,00,000).

Cap band

Whether a company is large, mid, small or micro cap, based on its market capitalisation. Larger companies tend to be less volatile.

Sector and industry

The NSE groups companies into broad sectors (such as Financial Services) and narrower industries within them (such as Banks), based on what they mainly do.

Trading graph

How the share price has moved during the latest trading session, from the 9:15 open to the 3:30 close. The dashed line is the previous day's closing price.