New Delhi, Aug. 24 -- On a day when India's defence stocks mostly fell, the one that rose hardest was the one that answers to a different ministry. Cochin Shipyard gained 2.26 percent on Monday, the best performance among the country's six large defence-linked manufacturers, and it did so while carrying the group's steepest discount to its own high and its worst recent profit trend. That combination is not a contradiction. It is the market noticing which of these companies is not waiting on the Ministry of Defence.

the stock opened at Rs.1,480.50, which was also its low for the day, and finished at Rs.1,514 against a high of Rs.1,516. It went one way from the first trade to the last, on 8.5 lakh shares.

Set that against the scoreboard a...