Market cap of RIL jumps

Mumbai, Feb. 27: The market capitalisation of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) sprinted past the Rs 4-trillion-mark today as brisk buying saw the counter posting handsome gains of around 5 per cent.

On the BSE, the oil giant, which has now emerged as a disruptive force in the country's telecom sector, ended at Rs 1,238.60, a rise of Rs 56, or 4.74 per cent.

The stock had touched an intra-day peak of Rs 1,256.50, a rise of 6.25 per cent over the previous close. The counter closed with a market cap of Rs 4,01,784.63 crore, or Rs 4.01 trillion.

At present, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is the most valuable scrip with a market cap of over Rs 4,90,419 crore or Rs 4.9 trillion. However, it remains to be seen how long the country's largest software services exporter will be able to hold on to this position.

IT stocks have been under pressure because of apprehensions over the policies of the Trump administration in the US along with tepid global conditions.

Recently, TCS announced a buyback offer that could lift the sentiment among investors. HDFC Bank, the country's second-largest private bank, comes behind RIL with a market cap of Rs 3,56,836 crore or Rs 3.5 trillion.

After underperforming the benchmark indices for many years, the RIL counter has seen a good run after its telecom venture announced an end to the freebies after March 31.

RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani had announced last Tuesday that existing customers will be offered a new tariff plan of Rs 303 a month for a year and a one-time joining fee of Rs 99. He further said that for data, Jio will not only match the highest selling tariffs of the other leading operators but also provide 20 per more data in each of these plans.

Ahead of the announcement, there was fear among investors that Jio will extend the freebies by another month. With the telecom arm announcing tariffs for data use, experts feel its EBITDA will break even earlier than expected.

"We see Jio's commercial launch and Prime membership plan as a modest positive versus expectations," says a report from Kotak Institutional Equities.

Given the possibility of quicker EBITDA/cash break-even. High retention of 100 million subscribers will be crucial in the shaping up of profitability," says a report from Kotak Institutional Equities.

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)