Suzlon Energy settles another tax penalty order; arm SE Forge's CEO resigns

Suzlon Energy Ltd on Tuesday said the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) cancelled a penalty of Rs 87.59 crore imposed by the National Faceless Penalty Centre (I-T department) for certain disallowances during the financial year 2015-16. Yesterday, ITAT nullified a tax penalty order worth Rs 172.76 crore.

"With this, the penalty aggregating to Rs 260.35 crore levied by National Faceless Penalty Centre, I-T department, for the FY 2015-16 and FY 2016-17, as intimated by us vide our letter dated March 28, 2024, read with our letter dated December 30, 2024, stands cancelled. Further, to clarify, this would not result into any refund as the penalty was under stay/abeyance," the renewable energy solution provider stated in a BSE filing.

Separately, the company informed exchanges that S Venkata Subramaniam, chief executive officer (CEO) of its wholly-owned subsidiary SE Forge Ltd, has resigned. "This is to inform that S Venkata Subramaniam, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SE Forge Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, and designated as one of the SMPs of the company, has resigned from the services with effect from close of business hours on December 31, 2024 and accordingly he will cease to be the SMP of the company from close of business hours on December 31, 2024," Suzlon said.

Subramaniam said he tendered his resignation "to pursue better opportunities." In addition, CRISIL Ratings upgraded its credit rating on Suzlon to 'CRISIL A' with a positive outlook, underscoring the company's robust performance and improved profitability.

On the stock-specific front, Suzlon today rose 1.19 per cent to settle at Rs 62.23. At this price, the scrip closed calendar year 2024 with 61.72 per cent gains as compared to an 8.12 per cent rise in benchmark BSE Sensex during the same period.

Investors with a high-risk appetite can buy Suzlon Energy shares, said Kranthi Bathini, Director of Equity Strategy at WealthMills Securities. "The company has faced corporate governance issues in the past and some of them persist. As the renewable energy sector is in an uptrend, one can consider adding this stock on dips," the market expert also said.

Technically, the support level could be seen at Rs 60. "Rs 70 will act as near-term resistance and a decisive move above the said level can only trigger the next leg of rally. Support will be now at Rs 60," said Ravi Singh, Senior Vice-President (Retail Research) at Religare Broking.

A daily close above the resistance level of Rs 70 is required for more upside, said Sebi-registered research analyst AR Ramachandran.

According to BSE data, the company's stock has a price-to-equity (P/E) ratio of 282.86 against a price-to-book (P/B) value of 21.91. Earnings per share (EPS) stood at 0.22 with a return on equity (RoE) of 7.81. Promoters held a 13.25 per cent stake in the company as of September 2024, which is slightly lower from 13.27 per cent in the previous quarter.