State-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) reported a 20% y-o-y rise in net profit for the December quarter, led by higher margins.
The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 3,805.94 crore for the October-December period of FY24, as against Rs 3,181.42 crore in the same period last year. This, however, was lower than Street estimates of Rs 5,200 crore.
Profit grew 66% on a quarter-on-quarter basis from Rs 2,297.23 crore in the July-September period.
However, revenue from operations declined to Rs 1.27 lakh crore in the third quarter from Rs 1.3 lakh crore a year ago, mainly due to falling oil prices.
Dividend
The company’s board has also approved an interim dividend of Rs 5 per share.
BPCL has set Wednesday, January 29, 2025, as the record date to determine which shareholders will be eligible for the interim dividend.
Investment in Indonesian oil and gas block
Along with its third quarter results, BPCL announced plans to invest $121 million to develop the Nunukan oil and gas block in Indonesia, according to exchange filings on Wednesday.
BPCL’s exploration arm, Bharat PetroResources, holds a 16.23% stake in the Nunukan block, which is operated by Indonesia’s national oil company, Pertamina. The refiner is seeking approval from Indonesian regulators to develop the block.
BPCL Share Price Analysis
The company’s shares gained 14.92% in the past one year and outperformed its sector peers by 13.78%. Meanwhile, the stock has returned 45.45% in the last three years. As per the trendline, it has delivered better 1-year returns than Nifty 50, Sensex, its sector and industry.
