Asian Paints share price: Paints stocks lost sheen on the domestic bourses, as shares of Asian Paints slipped to nearly seven-month low on Tuesday after the company announced weaker-than-expected corporate earnings for the second quarter ended September 2018. A weak Q2 performance also dragged Kansai Nerolac Paints share price by over 8%. Besides, other paint companies like Berger Paints and Shalimar Paints too extended their downward trajectory, falling up to 7% on the BSE.
Asian Paints shares fell by 6.81% to hit an intra-day low of Rs 1,119.60 per share on the BSE after the company posted nearly 15% fall in its consolidated net profit for Q2 2018, hurt by higher expenses. In a regulatory filing to the BSE, the company on Monday said its total income moved up by 8.66% to Rs 4,702.37 crore during the quarter under review, while total expenses rose by 11% to Rs 3,961.76 crore.
Also read: Share market live updates: Sensex opens 200 points lower, Nifty below 10,200; RIL shares down 1%
Following the company’s performance in the second quarter of 2018, Citi analysts said weaker mix, escalation in input costs and delayed price hikes led to margin contraction, EBITDA fell 2%. The brokerage arm has kept the price target at Rs 1,480 with “neutral” rating. Commenting on the Q2 results, analysts from Macquarie said “margin pressure due to high input costs”. Macquarie has maintained “neutral” rating with price target of Rs 1,300.
Other paint companies include Kansai Nerolac Paints, whose share price fell by 8.43% to a fresh 52-week low of Rs 356.80 per share on the BSE after it reported a 15.65% decline in its net profit for the quarter under review. “During the quarter demand was dampened. Factors like GST rate changes in July leading to destocking by dealers, lingering monsoons over many parts of India and a delayed festival season affected demand for both decorative and industrial customers,” HM Bharuka, VC and MD, Kansai Nerolac, said in a statement on Monday.
Apart from Asian Paints and Kansai Nerolac Paints, other paint stocks too put up a dull performance on Tuesday, with Berger Paints shares falling 6.92% to Rs 260.55 per share on the BSE. Shalimar Paints shares slipped 5.75% to an intra-day low of Rs 85.95 a piece on the BSE. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the Sensex gave up 280 points intra-day to scale a low of 33,852.70 points.