Asian Paints Shares Drop Most in 14 Months Amid Persistent Demand Challenges

Asian Paints shares plunged sharply in Wednesday’s trading, recording their biggest single-day fall in 14 months. By 10:20 am, the stock was down 5.6% at Rs 2,478 on the BSE, after earlier touching a low of Rs 2,451. The decline followed the release of the company’s third-quarter earnings, highlighting softer-than-expected performance in its domestic decorative business.

The paint major reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 1,073.92 crore, down 4.8% from Rs 1,128.43 crore in the same quarter last year, despite revenue rising to Rs 8,867.02 crore from Rs 8,549.44 crore. Brokerage JM Financial retained a ‘Reduce’ rating on the stock, lowering its target price to Rs 2,735, citing continued demand challenges, a shorter festive season, and extended monsoons that affected sales growth.

However, Asian Paints’ industrial and international segments showed positive momentum. The AP-PPG joint venture and PPG-AP automotive business posted revenue growth of 16.5% and 16.9%, respectively, while international operations delivered 6.3% sales growth, driven by strong performance in Sri Lanka, the UAE, and Ethiopia. Despite these pockets of growth, recovery in domestic demand remains slower than expected.

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