Reliance Industries m-cap tops Rs 17 lakh crore as shares surge over 8% after Q2 results; biggest gain in 6 yrs

The stock was also the most actively traded on both the NSE and BSE. The sharp rally in RIL stock drove broad gains in the equity market. At 11:20 am, the Sensex was up 966 points, or 1.3 percent, at 75,425, while the Nifty gained 274 points, or 1.2 percent, to trade at 23,327. Reliance Industries reported its strongest-ever quarterly financial performance for the July-September quarter, with record revenue, EBITDA and net profit, supported by robust growth in its oil-to-chemicals (O2C) business, digital services and retail operations.

Consolidated revenue surged 28 percent year-on-year to an all-time high of Rs 3.62 lakh crore, while EBITDA increased 24 percent to a record Rs 62,409 crore. Net profit jumped 34 percent to Rs 29,550 crore, also a quarterly record. The O2C business delivered its strongest-ever quarterly performance, with revenue rising 44.2 percent year-on-year to Rs 2.32 lakh crore and EBITDA surging 67.9 percent to Rs 25,203 crore.

Transportation fuel cracks, a measure of refining margins, increased 3 to 3.7 times from a year earlier, reaching historic highs during the quarter. Reliance's digital services business also reported growth, with Jio Platforms recording an 11.3 percent year-on-year increase in revenue to Rs 47,485 crore. Its EBITDA rose 16.6 percent to Rs 21,879 crore, supported by subscriber additions, higher average revenue per user and expansion in digital services.

Goldman Sachs and Nomura maintained their Buy ratings on Reliance Industries following its record quarterly performance, citing strong refining earnings and steady telecom growth, even as retail earnings remained under pressure. Goldman Sachs set a target price of Rs 1,840 per share, implying 58 percent upside from Friday's closing price of Rs 1,164.90. The brokerage said Reliance's Q2 EBITDA exceeded its estimates by 9 percent, led by strong O2C performance.

Nomura also retained its Buy rating, with a target price of Rs 1,560 per share. The brokerage attributed the record earnings to multi-decade-high refining cracks and noted that consolidated EBITDA rose 19 percent sequentially, beating estimates by 9 percent.