Shares of Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) saw a decent uptick in Friday's trading session. The stock jumped 4.54 per cent to hit a high of Rs 17.28. It was last seen trading 3.09 per cent up at Rs 17.04. At this price, the scrip has gained 25.57 per cent in a month.
Around 9.78 crore changed hands today at the time of writing this story. The figure was lower than the two-week average volume of 12.30 crore shares. Turnover on the counter came at Rs 167.11 crore, commanding a market capitalisation (m-cap) of Rs 1,15,597.74 crore.
Analysts largely remained positive on the counter. "When a tariff hike happens, it will be beneficial for all telecom operators. The recent stake sale (by Vodafone Group) in Indus Towers reduces the leverage component by a tad bit," Mayuresh Joshi, Head of Equity Research at William O'Neil India, told Business Today TV.
"If you are a high-risk trader or investor, Vodafone Idea's stock is for you," he suggested. Conservative traders can give it a miss, Joshi added.
UK-based Vodafone Group Plc has sold 48.47 crore shares or 18 per cent stake in Indus Towers, raising Rs 15,300 crore. Voda Idea was formed in 2018 when Vodafone Group merged its India business with Idea Cellular. As of May 21, 2024, promoters held a 38.17 per cent stake in the company.
On technical setup, immediate support could be seen at Rs 16.35 level. With that being said, the stock has potential to hit an upside target of Rs 18.50. The counter was seen trading higher than the 5-day, 10-, 20-, 30-, 50-, 100-, 150-day and 200-day simple moving averages (SMAs).
"The stock looked strong on daily charts. It can hit an upside target price of Rs 18.50, keeping stop loss placed at Rs 16.20," said Ravi Singh, Senior Vice-President (Retail Research) at Religare Broking.
"Support will be at Rs 16.35 and resistance at Rs 17.40. A decisive close above the Rs 17.40 level may trigger a further upside to Rs 18.50. The expected short-term trading range will be between Rs 16 and Rs 19," said Jigar S Patel, Senior Manager - Technical Research at Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers.
VIL's consolidated loss after tax widened to Rs 7,675 crore during the fourth quarter (Q4 FY24). Consolidated revenue, however, rose 0.7 per cent on a year-on-year (YoY) basis to Rs 10,607 crore in Q4 FY24.
VIL's 4G subscriber base grew to 12.63 crore as of March 31, 2024, from 12.26 crore a year ago. But its overall subscriber base fell about 6 per cent to 21.3 crore.
The telco's ARPU, a key performance metric for telecom firms, rose to Rs 146 from Rs 135 a year earlier. The firm has successfully raised a total of Rs 18,000 crore from its follow-on offering (FPO). It is in the process of rolling out its 5G services in select areas.