Reliance shares surge almost 12%, see best single-day gain in over 6 years: What's driving the rally

RIL share price today: Reliance Industries shares witnessed a sharp rally on Monday, climbing almost 12 per cent in their strongest single-day performance since April 7, 2020. The surge came after the company announced its highest-ever quarterly profit of Rs 29,550 crore for the July-September period.On the BSE, the stock advanced 11.64 per cent to close at its intraday peak of Rs 1,299. A similar rally was seen on the NSE, where the shares gained 11.59 per cent to finish at Rs 1,300, also the day’s highest level.The sharp rise in the stock added Rs 1,83,298.24 crore to the company’s market capitalisation, taking its total valuation to Rs 17,57,876.78 crore.Reliance Industries, which holds the position of India’s most valuable listed company by market capitalisation, emerged as the top-performing stock among the Sensex and Nifty constituents. Its gains also provided a significant lift to the broader equity market.The benchmark indices extended their winning run to a third consecutive session. The BSE Sensex, comprising 30 stocks, advanced 1,233.25 points, or 1.66 per cent, to finish at its day’s high of 75,692.78. The NSE Nifty, with 50 constituents, climbed 387.70 points, or 1.68 per cent, to settle at 23,440.80, also its highest level during the session.The rally followed Reliance Industries Ltd’s announcement on Friday that its consolidated profit for July-September had touched a record Rs 29,550 crore. This represented a 33.8 per cent increase over the corresponding period of the previous year. Stronger earnings from its oil-to-chemicals business, supported by higher global fuel margins, along with expansion in the telecom business, helped compensate for the relatively weaker performance of its retail operations.In the July-September quarter of the previous year, profit after tax, including the share of associates and joint ventures, stood at Rs 22,092 crore. Meanwhile, net profit attributable to the company’s owners increased 40 per cent to Rs 25,548 crore.Consolidated revenue for the latest quarter grew 27.8 per cent to Rs 3,62,268 crore. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also registered a 23.9 per cent rise, reaching an all-time high of Rs 62,409 crore.The July-September earnings were also higher than the Rs 23,196 crore profit recorded in the preceding quarter, marking a new quarterly record for India’s largest listed company by market capitalisation.A major contributor to the improved performance was the recovery in Reliance’s oil-to-chemicals (O2C) operations. Higher transportation fuel cracks and better petrochemical margins strengthened profitability in this segment. The digital services business also reported growth, helping support overall earnings, although the retail division remained relatively weak.Among the company’s businesses, O2C, which includes its oil refining and petrochemical operations, accounted for the largest share of the growth. Its EBITDA increased 67.9 per cent to Rs 25,203 crore, while revenue from the segment rose 44.2 per cent to Rs 2,31,601 crore.Jefferies said O2C “hit the bullseye”, citing record crude processing, flexible sourcing and a shift towards higher-value fuel exports that helped Reliance benefit from favourable refining conditions. The brokerage raised its earnings forecasts following the stronger-than-expected results.Emkay Global also pointed to the sharp recovery in O2C and improving profitability at Jio as key drivers of the earnings beat. It raised its estimates and maintained that the stock’s valuation remained attractive.Retail continued to be the softer part of the business. Reliance Retail’s gross revenue rose 6.4 per cent to Rs 91,716 crore, but EBITDA before a one-time impairment charge declined 8.6 per cent to Rs 6,228 crore. Investments in digital commerce, higher input costs and the shift of major festivals to the December quarter weighed on performance. JioMart, however, recorded 42 per cent revenue growth.

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