Asian Paints second most valuable paints company in the world

Asian Paints has emerged as the second-most valuable paints company in the world. The company’s market capitalisation has soared 22 per cent to $43.7 billion at the end of December 31 from $35.6 billion a year ago. It now ranks 450th in the world in terms of m-cap. The company's stock price ended 0.5 per cent higher on Friday at Rs 3,382 on the BSE. 

For the quarter ended September, the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 605.2 crore, a 29 per cent decline over the same period in the previous year, on account of higher expenses and input costs. The company’s consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 7,096 crore, a 32 per cent jump over Rs 5,350 crore it made a year ago.

Analysts expect the Indian paint sector to drive outperformance in revenue growth led by penetration, market share gains and new categories. Gross margins and valuation multiples are also likely to sustain driven by pricing-power and fast growth opportunities.