Shares of Trent, one of the country’s most keenly-followed retailers, on Monday crashed as much as 19% intra-day on the BSE and the National Stock Exchange following a weak business update for the last quarter of the previous fiscal (Q4FY25). This was the biggest single-day fall for the stock since March 2020, reflecting a broader retail slowdown.
Trent was the top loser in the Nifty-50 index on Monday, which was down about 4% amid a global selloff on fears that a trade war would spark a recession.
The Tata Group company reported a 28% growth in revenue at Rs 4,334 crore for the March quarter, compared with Rs 3,381 crore a year ago. This is lower than its five-year revenue CAGR of 36%, sector analysts said. Trent added 132 Zudio stores and 13 Westside outlets in the latest quarter.
While the company did not provide same-store sales growth number for Q4, analysts estimate it to have moderated to around 5-6% from 8-9% in Q3FY25. Despite the retailer reporting a 39% year-on-year growth in revenue at Rs 17,624 crore for FY25, investors remain jittery about the stock amid growing competitive pressures, especially from the Reliance-Shein combine, which is also positioned as a value retailer.
The 28% revenue growth for the latest quarter is the slowest since January-March 2021, when it faced pandemic-induced operational disruptions, Abhijeet Kundu, equity analyst at Antique Stockbroking, said. “In our view, after delivering strong double-digit like-for-like growth over the last few years, the high base effect is beginning to moderate Trent’s growth momentum.”
In FY25, Trent added 284 stores, including 240 Zudio outlets and 40 Westside stores, across the country. On an average, the company has maintained this pace per year, experts said. As of March 31, 2025, Trent’s retail network included 248 Westside stores and 765 Zudio outlets.
While Trent’s stock more than doubled in value in 2023 and then again in 2024, the momentum has faltered in 2025. The stock has fallen about 36% year-to-date (in 2025), making it the worst performer in the Nifty 50, sector experts said.