ITC shares fall after Q4 result

Shares in ITC Ltd fell 3.29 per cent on Monday after the company reported lower-than-expected Q4 numbers on Friday.

For the quarter ended March 2015, the company reported standalone net profit of Rs 987.22 crore, up 4.50 per cent, against Rs 944.73 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago. Net sales of the company grew 0.47 per cent year-on-year to Rs 9,188.25 crore for the quarter under review.

Higher taxes on smoke hurt the business of ITC. During January-March, the company paid tax of Rs 987.22 crore, up 4.50 per cent, against Rs 944.73 crore in the same period last year.

According to Reliance Securities, revenue growth missed expectations by around 5 per cent and was impacted by weak performance across the board (ex-non cigarette FMCG business).

Religare Securities in a research report said, "With pressure on cigarettes volumes growth and muted FMCG and other businesses, we foresee limited near-term drivers for the company. We are downgrading our target price for ITC to Rs 350 (from Rs 360 earlier)."

On Friday, ITC shares closed at Rs 317.65.