Shares of Astec Lifesciences fell sharply in Tuesday’s trade after the company declared its earnings for the December quarter. The stock plunged 14.24 per cent to hit a day low of Rs 1,304.45 over its previous close of Rs 1,521.10. The company’s consolidated net profit slumped 96.61 per cent to Rs 84 lakh in the December quarter (Q3) of the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) as against Rs 24.75 crore in the same period a year ago.
Revenue from operations in the December 2022 quarter slipped 32.37 per cent to Rs 117 crore against Rs 173 crore in December 2021.
Around 6,505 shares changed hands today on BSE, which was seven times higher compared to Astec’s two-week average volume of 846 shares. Turnover on the counter stood at Rs 88.45 lakh, commanding a market capitalisation (m-cap) of Rs 2,674.21 crore. There were 5,478 sell orders on BSE against buy orders of 3,636 shares.
The stock was last seen trading lower than 5-day, 20-, 50-, 100- and 200-day moving averages. The counter’s 14-day relative strength index (RSI) came at 22.71. A level below 30 is defined as oversold while a value above 70 is considered overbought. The company’s stock has a price-to-equity (P/E) ratio of 30.60.
Astec Lifesciences has an average target price of Rs 2,215, Trendlyne data showed, suggesting a potential upside of 57.14 per cent. The scrip has a one-year beta of 0.99, indicating average volatility.
Commenting on the quarterly numbers, NB Godrej, Chairman of Astec LifeSciences, said: “Q3 FY23 was a challenging quarter for Astec’s enterprise business as our key products witnessed sluggish demand and lower realization in most of the markets. However, CMO sales grew by 2.8 times year-on-year (YoY) partly offsetting the decline in volumes from enterprise business.”
The company, in an exchange filing, said its board has approved the proposal to raise funds through issuance of non-convertible debentures for expansion and development of business operations and financial requirements for an amount up to Rs 50 crore.
Astec manufactures a wide range of agrochemicals and pharmaceutical intermediates. It produces a range of fungicides, insecticides, herbicides and intermediates for its global customers. Godrej Agrovet is the promoter entity of Astec Lifesciences and holds a 64.7 per cent stake in the company.
Meanwhile, Indian equity benchmarks traded slightly higher in afternoon deals as losses in technology and energy stocks countered gains in metals and state-owned lenders.
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