Petronet LNG: brighter outlook on volumes provides assurance

In this jittery market, investors in LNG (liquefied natural gas) importer Petronet LNG Ltd should be happy. After all, the stock is up 5.5% so far in FY20, outpacing the Nifty 200 index, which fell 6.4% in the same period.

In the June quarter, the company beat volume estimates. The outlook for the September quarter is also upbeat. Analysts at Jefferies India Pvt. Ltd said in a report on 5 September: “Monthly LNG import estimates vary widely across sources, but The Gujarat Maritime Board suggests that imports at Dahej surged to 1.68 million tonnes in June when Petronet commissioned its 2.5-million-tonne expansion and have held strong at nearly 1.55 million tonnes in July and August as well.”

If the momentum persists, investors could well see another quarter of robust volumes.