Street cautious on HPCL after 99% drop in Q4 net profit

Mumbai: Inventory losses in the March quarter prompted analysts to maintain their cautious outlook on HPCLNSE 3.08 % despite the stock trading at a significant discount to its historical valuations. The company on Tuesday posted a 99 per cent drop in its net profit at Rs 27 crore for the March quarter compared to a net profit of Rs 2,970 crore in the corresponding period a year ago. Fall in refining margins and huge inventory losses due to crash in international oil prices dragged the state-owned oil marketing company’s bottomline.

Shares of HPCL, which declined nearly 20 per cent in the past six months, ended 2 per cent higher at Rs 214 on the BSE on Wednesday.