Noel's appointment as Tata Trusts' chair signals continuity, BAU: Analysts

It will be business as usual (BAU) for Tata group stocks post Noel Naval Tata’s appointment as the chair of Tata Trusts’, said analysts. The development, they said, will signal continuity. For the markets, it will be a confidence booster as a family member and someone from the ‘Tata’ fold is back at the helm after the passing of Ratan Tata.

On Friday, Noel Tata, was unanimously elected as the chairman of Tata Trusts following the passing of Ratan Tata earlier this week. Tata Sons is the principal investment holding company and promoter of the other Tata group companies. 

Noel is the half-brother of the late Ratan Tata, and was already a key trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust. Post the appointment, Noel will lead the trusts that hold a controlling stake in Tata Sons. 66 per cent of the equity share capital of Tata Sons is held by philanthropic trusts that support education, health, livelihood generation, and art and culture.

Back in 1991, according to Ambareesh Baliga, an independent market analyst, Ratan Tata had to stamp his presence when he took over from J.R.D Tata and set the house in order, but things are different now, as all businesses are streamlined and are doing well.

“I don’t think anything much will change. Tata group is a perfect example of institutionalisation. The quality of leader should be such that even if the leader is not there, the institution carries on. That’s what Tata’s have built over the years. That said, every person is different, and so is his/her leadership style. Knowing the Tata legacy, not much change is expected. Noel Tata has also not been in this role before. To that extent, we need to wait-and-watch,” Baliga said.

At the bourses, meanwhile, Tata group stocks traded mixed post the development. While TCS lost around 2 per cent, reacting mostly to its September 2024 quarter (Q2-FY25) numbers announced a day earlier, Tata Elxsi lost nearly 1 per cent in intra-day deals on Friday.

On the other hand, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Titan, Tata Consumer Products, Tata Communications and Titan were some of the other group stocks that gained up to 1 per cent. Tata Chemicals, Trent, Tata Investment Corporation, however, gained between 2 per cent and 3 per cent during the intra-day deals on the BSE, showed data.

“I don’t think the head of Tata Son’s or Tata Trusts’ will interfere in the day-to-day working of Tata group companies. Ratan Tata, too, did not interfere during his tenure. Noel Tata is unique and has a lot of business acumen. This is evident from the recent business forays of Trent (where Noel was elevated to the post of chairman in 2014) into lab-grown diamonds. The move into lab-grown diamonds can give a tough competition to the other jewelers that are into original diamonds. All this speaks volumes about his leadership and vision,” said A K Prabhakar, an independent market analyst.