Lenskart block deal: Stock tumbles 5% as turnover surges; Alpha Wave likely seller

Lenskart Solutions Ltd shares fell 5 per cent in Monday’s trade as trading volumes surged 57 times their two-week average amid reports of a likely block deal by Alpha Wave Ventures LP. A total of 2.84 crore Lenskart shares changed hands, Bloomberg reported.

Following the development, Lenskart shares fell 5 per cent to hit a low of Rs 643.80 on BSE. Alpha Wave Ventures LP was reportedly looking to sell up to a 1.6 per cent stake in Lenskart at a floor price of Rs 640 per share, a 5.6 per cent discount to Friday’s closing price. According to CNBC-TV18, the base offer comprised 1.51 crore shares, or 0.9 per cent equity, valued at an estimated Rs 950 crore. An upsize option covered an additional 1.13 crore shares, or 0.7 per cent equity, valued at Rs 724.60 crore.

For the September quarter, Lenskart is expected to report another strong performance, with revenue growth of over 30 per cent year-on-year (YoY).

JM Financial expects revenue to rise 30 per cent YoY, led by growth of 31 per cent in India and 27 per cent in international markets. Operating leverage is expected to drive a 190-basis-point YoY expansion in Ebitda margin.

“We expect pre-Ind-AS Ebitda margin expansion of 200 bps YoY to 13.2 per cent, led by 180 bps/300 bps YoY expansion in India/International segment pre-Ind-AS Ebitda margin,” JM Financial said in a note.

Elara Securities expects Lenskart to report 34 per cent YoY revenue growth, driven by volume growth in both its India and international businesses, along with higher realisations due to a favourable base.

Kotak Institutional Equities also estimates 34 per cent YoY revenue growth in the September quarter, driven by growth of 31 per cent in India and 30 per cent in international markets.

“We expect growth to be primarily volume driven, in turn driven by healthy store addition and strong SSSG performance. We model consolidated gross margin of 69.6 per cent, implying YoY margin expansion of 60 bps. This drives pre-Ind-AS Ebitda margin of 13.5 per cent, a YoY expansion of 270 bps,” Kotak said.

At the segment level, Kotak estimates pre-Ind-AS Ebitda margins of 16.1 per cent for India and 10.1 per cent for the international business.