Shares of Avenue Supermarts Ltd. snapped their five-session losing streak after the operator of DMart supermarket chain saw its revenue in the second quarter jump over the pre-pandemic level as business activities picked up on easing curbs to prevent a deadlier second wave.
The company, owned by billionaire Radhakishan Damani, saw its revenue from operations rise 57% and 28.6% over the corresponding period in FY19 and FY20, respectively, in the three months ended September 2021, according to its business update released on the bourses. The revenue also rose 52% over the April-June 2021 period.
Avenue Supermarts, according to the exchange filing, also added eight new stores during the reported quarter, taking its total count to 246.
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The numbers, Macquarie said, points to a sharp recovery in demand. That prompted the research house to upgrade its earnings per share estimates for Avenue Supermarts by 3% for FY22 and 1% each for FY23 and FY24. Macquarie maintained its ‘outperform' rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 4,950 apiece.
Shares of Avenue Supermarts rose as much as 5% intraday to Rs 4,465.75 apiece on the BSE but pared most gains to trade 0.72% higher as of 1.14 p.m. on Monday. The stock has rallied 49.46% in the last six months, leading to a market capitalisation of Rs 2.76 lakh crore for the company.
Of the 30 analysts tracking the company, nine each have a ‘buy' and ‘hold' rating, while 12 suggest a ‘sell', according to Bloomberg data. The 12-month consensus price target implies a downside of 24%.
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