OMCs extend gain; Indian Oil hits record high

IOC rallied 5%, while HPCL and BPCL were up 3% and 2%, respectively

Shares of state-run oil marketing companies (OMCs) were trading higher on the bourses in early morning trade after these companies on Saturday hiked the price of subsidised cooking gas, or LPG, along with kerosene and aviation turbine fuel (ATF).

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) were up between 2% and 5% on the BSE as compared to a marginal 0.01% decline in the S&P BSE Sensex at 10:15 am. All these stocks were gained up to 1% on Monday.

The three state-owned OMCs revise rates on 1st and 16th of every month based on average international price in the previous fortnight.

Among individual stocks, IOC, the largest gainers, hit a record high of Rs 342, up 5% on the BSE. HPCL was up 3% at Rs 463, while BPCL up 2% at Rs 651 in intra-day trade.

Meanwhile, according to IIFL Wealth Management, H1FY17 performance of OMCs was hit by inventory losses and weakness in gross refining margins (GRMs). However, during H2FY17, GRMs have moved up and companies are likely to report inventory gains.  Furthermore, marketing volumes have seen an increase. These factors will result in substantial improvement in profitability of OMCs.