Explained: Why Reliance Industries shares fell over 2% in early trade
By India Today Business Desk: Shares of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) experienced a sharp decline in early trade on Monday, casting a shadow on the broader market sentiment. As of 9:55 am, the company’s shares were down over 2 per cent, trading at Rs 2,486.90 per share.
The decline in Reliance shares followed the release of the company’s financial results for the first quarter of the fiscal year 2023-24 on Friday.
Reliance Industries Ltd reported an 11 per cent drop in its net profit for the June quarter, largely attributed to weaker performance in the oil-to-chemical (O2C) vertical and higher interest and depreciation costs.
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The net profit for the April-June quarter stood at Rs 16,011 crore, equivalent to Rs 23.66 per share. In comparison, during the same period last year, the company had reported a net profit of Rs 17,955 crore, or Rs 26.54 per share, according to a filing with the stock exchange.
Moreover, the net profit figure declined when compared to the preceding quarter, which recorded earnings of a record Rs 19,299 crore in the three months ended March 31.
The dip in revenue from operations was also evident, as it decreased to Rs 2.1 lakh crore from Rs 2.22 lakh crore in the year-ago period and Rs 2.16 lakh crore in January-March 2023. The primary reasons behind this decline were lower crude oil prices and reduced margins on fuels such as diesel.
Analysts had anticipated a potential decline in Reliance shares today, considering the weak Q1 results that fell below market estimates. The weaker-than-expected financial performance has left investors cautious, triggering a selloff in the company’s shares.
