Buzzing Stocks: RIL, HUL, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, Paytm, CESC, Zee, KPI Green, others in news

Results on January 20: ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Union Bank of India, IDBI Bank, IDFC First Bank, Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency, Persistent Systems, Aarti Surfactants, Can Fin Homes, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, JK Cement, LKP Securities, Rossari Biotech, Seshasayee Paper & Boards, Sportking India, Tatva Chintan Pharma Chem, and Waaree Renewable Technologies will be in focus ahead of their quarterly earnings on January 20.

Reliance Industries: Billionaire Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani-owned company has reported healthy numbers for the quarter ended December FY24, with consolidated net profit growing 10.9 percent on-year to Rs 19,641 crore and EBITDA rising sharply by 16.7 percent on-year to Rs 44,678 crore, boosted by retail, digital (Jio), and oil and gas businesses. Consolidated revenue of Rs 2,48,160 crore for the quarter grew by 3.2 percent YoY, supported by continued growth momentum in consumer businesses. The EBITDA margin expanded by 210 bps YoY to 18 percent for the quarter. [Disclosure: Moneycontrol is a part of the Network18 group. Network18 is controlled by Independent Media Trust, of which Reliance Industries is the sole beneficiary].

Hindustan Unilever: The FMCG major has recorded a 0.6 percent on-year increase in standalone net profit at Rs 2,519 crore for the October-December quarter of FY24, due to weak topline and muted margin growth (of 10 bps YoY). Revenue from operations fell by 0.3 percent to Rs 15,188 crore compared to the year-ago period due to a decline in the growth of the home care and beauty and personal care segments.

One 97 Communications: The Paytm operator has posted a net loss of Rs 219.8 crore for the October–December FY24 quarter, narrowing from a loss of Rs 392 crore in the same period last year. Revenue from operations surged 38.2 percent year-on-year to Rs 2,850.5 crore for the quarter. Revenue from payment services grew by 45 percent YoY to Rs 1,730 crore, partly boosted by the timing of the festive season. The net payment margin was up 63 percent YoY at Rs 748 crore, and the gross merchandise value (GMV) increased 47 percent YoY to Rs 5.1 lakh crore.

Tata Steel: The Tata Group company will commence statutory consultation as part of its plan to transform and restructure its UK business. Up to 2,800 employees are expected to be potentially affected, out of which around 2,500 roles will be impacted in the next 18 months. The company proposed to commit in excess of 130 million pounds to a comprehensive support package for affected employees, and this is in addition to the 100 million pounds of funding for the Transition Board set up with the UK and Welsh governments to support affected employees, contractors, and communities. Under the transformation plan, Tata Steel will embark on a 1.25 billion pound investment in electric arc furnace technology in Port Talbot and asset upgrades to secure long-term, high-quality production at the UK’s largest steelmaker. The proposed investment is supported by the UK government, which has committed up to 500 million pounds to enable the transformation.

CESC: The electric power distribution company has registered a 11.91 percent on-year decline in consolidated profit at Rs 281 crore for the quarter ended December FY24, impacted by lower operating numbers and tepid revenue growth. Revenue from operations grew by 3.7 percent to Rs 3,244 crore during the quarter, compared to Rs 3,129 crore in the year-ago period.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises: The media and entertainment company has issued clarification on a media report, “Sony board to take call on $10 billion merger with company today’, saying it is not aware of, and cannot comment on, any board meeting held or proposed to be held by Culver Max Entertainment (formerly Sony Pictures Networks India). Zee is committed to the merger with Sony and is continuing to work towards the successful closure of the proposed merger. It engaged in good faith negotiations with Sony with a view to discussing the extension of the date required to make the scheme effective by a reasonable period of time.

KPI Green Energy: Subsidiary KPIG Energia has received a new order of 5.60 MW for executing a solar power project from Shree Varudi Paper Mill LLP. The projects are scheduled to be completed in the financial year 2024–25 in various tranches as per the terms of the order.

Fortis Healthcare: Agilus Diagnostics, a material subsidiary of the company, has received a notice from the Anti-Corruption Branch, Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, in respect of alleged anomalies in diagnostic tests conducted in the Aam Aadmi Mohalla Clinic. Agilus has rendered services for a total of Rs 20.40 crore till December 2023, which is less than 2 percent of its consolidated revenue. However, as of date, Agilus has only received a sum of Rs 3.30 crore from the Directorate General of Health Services, Delhi Government.

CreditAccess Grameen: The microfinance institution has recorded 63.8 percent on-year growth in net profit at Rs 353 crore for the quarter ended December FY24. Net interest income increased by 41.6 percent YoY to Rs 802.4 crore for the quarter, with the gross loan portfolio rising 31.5 percent to Rs 23,382 crore. Pre-provision operating profit grew by 58.6 percent YoY to Rs 601.8 crore during the quarter.

Sunteck Realty: The real estate developer has reported a net loss of Rs 9.7 crore for the quarter ended December FY24, impacted by weak operating performance with higher input costs and dismal topline performance. In the year-ago period, profit stood at Rs 2.07 crore. Revenue from operations fell by 52.5 percent YoY to Rs 42.45 crore during the same quarter.

Prataap Snacks: In a clarification note to exchanges on the news item in a media report, ‘Haldiram’s seeks to buy Indian chip maker Prataap Snacks’, Prataap Snacks says it is not in negotiations as reported in the news article and is not aware of any information that has not been announced to the exchanges.

RBL Bank: The private sector lender has recorded standalone profit at Rs 233 crore for the quarter ended December FY24, rising 12 percent YoY but missing analysts estimates. Excluding contingent provision on AIF investments, net profit grew 53 percent YoY to Rs 319 crore. Net interest income increased by 21 percent YoY to Rs 1,546 crore for the quarter. On the asset quality front, gross NPA was flat at 3.12 percent QoQ, but net NPA rose 2 bps QoQ to 0.80 percent during the quarter.

HFCL: The company has received a purchase order worth Rs 623 crore for the supply of indigenously manufactured telecom networking equipment for the 5G network of one of the domestic telecom service providers.

Tejas Networks: The broadband, optical, and wireless networking company has posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 44.9 crore in the October–December FY24 quarter, widening from a loss of Rs 15.2 crore in the year-ago period, impacted by higher input costs. However, revenue from operations grew by 104 percent YoY to Rs 560 crore for the quarter.