Shares of movie theater chains PVR Limited and INOX Leisure Limited fell Tuesday afternoon after the Delhi government issued a yellow alert closing down cinema halls with immediate effect. PVR shares tumbled 4.8% to Rs 1,270 a share while Inox fell about 2.6% to Rs 342.40 per share. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal declared restrictions in the capital city, announcing immediate closure of cinema halls, multiplexes, banquet halls, auditoriums, gyms and sports complexes.
Gurugram-headquartered PVR’s stock price rebounded from intraday lows after 2:44 pm and closed the day at Rs 1,286 apiece, falling 3.58% during the day’s trade. INOX also made a recovery and closed flat with a positive bias at Rs 352.40 per share. Multiplex shares have seen a volatile year on Dalal Street. While PVR has dropped 4% year-to-date, shares of INOX are up 22%. Multiplex business has taken a hit with renewed waves of Covid-19.
In the September quarter, PVR’s losses narrowed to Rs. 148.34 crore and revenue jumped to Rs. 107.75 crores as cinemas began opening up and the economy began to recover. Inox revenue also rose to Rs. 47.44 crore and the theater chain’s losses widened to Rs. 87.61 crores. Brokerage firm Edelweiss has given a buy rating to PVR at a price target of Rs. 1,324 per unit.
The capital city has entered a mini lockdown taking into account the spread of omicron variant with positivity rate peaking above 0.5% for the past few days.
