Shares of Lloyds Metals and Energy Ltd. surged nearly 14% to hit the day's high of ₹1,328 following the company's positive third quarter earnings announcement. According to reports from Informist, this represents the biggest single-day gain for the stock since April 2023. The stock is up for the third straight session and has gained nearly 24% during this period. The stock was trading at ₹1,290.50 on NSE with gains of over 10% during the session, with nearly 5 million shares changing hands, higher than 347,000 shares traded till the same time Tuesday. All the four brokerage reports available with Informist have a 'buy' recommendation with an average target price of ₹1,590.
The company's operational performance during the December quarter was significantly aided by four key factors that led to margin expansion. As reported by Informist, Lloyds Metals achieved margins of 34.8% compared to 32% in the year-ago period. The company reported a consolidated net profit of ₹10.47 billion for the December quarter, representing a nearly three times jump on a year-on-year basis. The earnings before interest, tax (EBIT) increased 36% for mining annually and 55% sequentially, while for sponge iron it was up 1,427% from the previous year and 57% from the previous quarter to ₹583 crore. The company's total revenue from operations jumped three times on a year-on-year basis to ₹50.58 billion.
According to the company's earnings report, several operational factors contributed to the strong performance. As reported by Informist, these included enhanced environmental clearance limits for iron ore, faster ramp up of pellet plant, and improved sponge iron volumes. The slurry pipeline also aided seamless evacuation of iron ore, making the company's assets work more efficiently. Additionally, the company commenced operations of its Direct Reduced-Iron business expansion during the third quarter.
Looking ahead, Lloyds Metals has approved the pellet capacity expansion at Konsari to 10 MTPA, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of financial year 2027. As reported by Informist, the company has provided guidance for FY26 and FY27 across its key divisions. For iron ore production, the company expects 20-22 million tonnes in FY26 and 25-26 million tonnes in FY27. Pellet production guidance stands at 2.8-3 million tonnes for FY26 and 6-8 million tonnes for FY27, while DRI production is targeted at 450-550kT for FY26 and 700kT for FY27.
