Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Jan 6: Shares of Tata group-owned retail chain operator Trent Ltd fell sharply on Tuesday after its December quarter business update failed to excite investors. The stock declined as much as 8.34 per cent to an intraday low of Rs 4,060 on the National Stock Exchange, while on the BSE it dropped up to 8.32 per cent amid higher-than-usual trading volumes.

In a post-market filing on Monday, Trent informed exchanges that its standalone revenue for the December quarter rose 17 per cent year-on-year to Rs 5,220 crore, compared to Rs 4,466 crore in the corresponding period last year. During the quarter, the company added 17 Westside stores and 48 Zudio stores. As of December-end, Trent’s store portfolio comprised 278 Westside outlets, 854 Zudio stores, including four in the UAE, and 32 stores across other lifestyle concepts.

The third-quarter business update drew mixed reactions from global brokerages. Citi said Trent’s standalone revenue growth of 16.9 per cent year-on-year was ahead of its estimate of 15.3 per cent, driven by higher-than-expected store additions. Westside and Zudio added 17 and 48 net stores respectively during the quarter, broadly in line with Citi’s expectations. Year-to-date, Westside and Zudio have added 30 and 89 stores, respectively, indicating an acceleration in expansion.

However, Citi flagged pressure on productivity, noting that average revenue per square foot declined 15.7 per cent year-on-year, largely in line with expectations. It added that revenue per square foot in Q3 was impacted by an early festive season, despite benefiting from a weaker base.

Morgan Stanley maintained its positive stance on Trent, stating that Q3 standalone revenue growth was largely in line with estimates. The brokerage highlighted sustained momentum in store expansion, with Westside adding 30 stores in the first nine months of the current fiscal, nearly double the FY23–25 annual average of 16. Zudio’s addition of 48 stores in Q3 was also ahead of estimates. However, it noted that sequential revenue growth was lower compared to recent quarters.

UBS struck a more cautious note, saying there was “no respite from the weaker growth trajectory”. It observed that Q3 revenue growth of 17 per cent was below expectations and marked another soft quarter.

The stock also witnessed a surge in trading activity. On the NSE, trading volume jumped 4.3 times to 24.46 lakh shares, compared to an average of 5.75 lakh shares. On the BSE, around 1.02 lakh shares were traded, higher than the two-week daily average of about 66,000 shares.

At 9.44 am, Trent shares were trading 7.11 per cent lower at Rs 4,115, significantly underperforming the benchmark Nifty 50 index, which was trading flat with a negative bias.