Stocks to Watch: Adani Group, Nykaa, Kotak Bank, SAIL, Zee Ent, IRB Infra

Adani Group: Adani Group has appointed accountancy firm Grant Thornton for independent audits of some of its companies in a bid to discredit claims by short-seller Hindenburg Research that have battered its stocks and bonds, two people familiar with the matter said on Monday. The appointment marks the first major effort by Adani Group to defend itself in the wake of a Jan. 24 report by Hindenburg that accused it of improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation. The conglomerate, led by billionaire Gautam Adani, has strongly denied the allegations but investors remain concerned.

FSN E-commerce Ventures: Online beauty and personal care retailer Nykaa’s consolidated net profit plunged more than 71% as an investment into lease rentals for stores, office space and warehouses ate up its margins. The company reported a profit of ₹8.5 crore during the quarter ended December 2022 compared to ₹29 crore in the same quarter previous fiscal, according to the documents it filed with the exchange. “All of our investments are happening in a manner that we continue to stay in a positive zone as far as our profitability goes,” said Falguni Nayar, chief executive of Nykaa.

Kotak Mahindra Bank: Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., backed by billionaire Uday Kotak, is considering selling a minority stake in its general insurance unit, according to people familiar with the matter. The lender is working with Morgan Stanley on the potential sale of a stake in Kotak General Insurance which could raise as much as a few hundred million dollars, the people said. The process could draw potential strategic partners as well as financial investors, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private.

SAIL: Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), a public sector undertaking on Monday reported a 65% decline in its net profit at Rs542.18 crore for the third quarter ending 31 December 2022. The company said its profit fell on account of higher expenses. The PSU had posted a net profit of Rs1,528.54 crore in the October-December period last fiscal year. The steelmaker’s total income fell to Rs25,140.16 crore in the December quarter of the current fiscal year from Rs25,398.37 crore a year ago.

GMR Power and Urban Infra: GMR Power And Urban Infra Ltd on Monday reported its consolidated net profit at ₹360.53 crore in the quarter ended December 31, 2022. The company had posted a consolidated net loss of ₹558.41 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal, GMR Power And Urban Infra Ltd said in a filing to BSE. The company’s consolidated income during the October-December period increased to ₹1,503.56 crore from ₹1,006.93 crore in the year-ago period.

Zee Entertainment: Media and entertainment company Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) posted a 92% drop in fiscal third-quarter net profit at ₹24.3 crore, from ₹298.7 crore a year ago. Operating revenue stood almost unchanged at ₹2,111.2 crore in the three months ended December against ₹2,112.6 crore a year earlier. Domestic ad revenue rose 5.7% sequentially to ₹1,015.4 crore, but fell 15.8% from a year ago. Ad revenue was impacted by the withdrawal of the company’s FTA (free-to-air) channel Zee Anmol from the DD Free Dish bouquet and a slowdown in ad spending by packaged consumer goods firms, ZEEL said in an exchange filing on Monday.

IRB Infrastructure: The company released its financial results for the third quarter of FY23. A 94% rise in net profit was recorded by the corporation during the third quarter that concluded on December 31, 2023. It has reported a net profit of Rs. 141 Crs in Q3FY23 compared to ₹73 Crs in the year-ago quarter. The total income for the same period was Rs. 1,570 crores, up 5% YoY from Rs. 1,498 crores in the corresponding quarter of FY22. The EBITDA of IRB Infra reached ₹801 Cr in Q3FY23 compared to ₹957 Cr in Q3FY22, representing a fall of 16%.

Spicejet: The Supreme Court on Monday directed SpiceJet Ltd to fulfil its obligation to pay ₹270 crore to its former promoter Kalanithi Maran following an arbitral award of ₹578 crore related to a shareholder dispute between the two parties. In addition, the court also asked the low-fare airline to pay ₹75 crore in interest dues. Maran claims interest dues of ₹362 crore. The decision comes after SpiceJet told the top court that it had already paid ₹308 crore in cash against the pending amount of ₹578 crore.

Indian Railway Finance Corporation: IRFC’s net profit increased by 2.48% YoY to ₹1633.45 crore in the quarter that ended in December 2022 from ₹1593.91 crore in the quarter that ended in December 2021. The company posted revenue from operations of ₹6218.10 Cr in Q3FY23 against ₹5095.96 Cr in Q3FY22, representing a YoY growth of 22.02%. The company’s net expenses reached ₹4588.58 Cr in Q3FY23 compared to ₹3503.24 Cr in the year-ago quarter. The EPS of the Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) stood at ₹1.25 in Q3FY23 compared to ₹1.22 in Q3FY22.

Dish TV: Minority investors of Dish TV have written to finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking regulatory action against the company for ignoring the investors’ request several times to call an extraordinary general meeting. In the second such letter to the government, the investors complained that both the ministry of corporate affairs and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) have refused to take any action despite repeated emails seeking regulatory action.