Weak volumes take sheen off UltraTech Cement's Q1 show; stock falls over 2%

Better realisations though helped post strong profitability and helped company beat analysts' expectations

Subdued sales volume reported by UltraTech Cement impacted Street sentiment with the stock slipping 2.57 per cent on the BSE on Thursday, a day that saw the best rally by leading indices in many months. Sales volume of India’s largest cement maker grew by a mere 2 per cent year-on-year to 17.86 million tonnes (MT) in the June quarter (Q1). Considering the organic and inorganic capacity expansions undertaken by UltraTech, the Street was expecting higher volume growth despite elections impacting cement demand during the seasonally strong June quarter. For instance, HDFC Securities had pegged UltraTech’s sales volume at 18.5 MT