Praj Industries share price gains 18% in two sessions but heads for worst yearly drop in 16 years
Praj Industries share price gained over 7% to ₹357.80, marking an 18% gain over two days. Despite recent recovery, the stock is down 57.21% year-to-date, its steepest drop since 2008. Analysts see potential in the company's diversification efforts amid ongoing challenges in the BioEnergy segment.
Praj Industries share price gains 18% in two sessions but heads for worst yearly drop in 16 years(Pixabay)
Praj Industries share price in focus: Shares of Praj Industries, a leading global biotechnology and engineering company, remained higher for the second straight session during Tuesday’s trade on December 16, rallying another 7.2% to reach a two-month high of ₹357.80 apiece. This took the cumulative two-day gain to 18%.
Shareholders appear to be rejoicing at the recovery seen in the stock after a sustained correction since the start of the year, which had eroded billions in investor wealth and sharply reduced the company’s market valuation.
Although Praj Industries share price has staged a solid rebound recently, helping pare some of its annual losses, its year-to-date decline still stands at 57.21%. This marks its steepest yearly drop since 2008, when the stock ended the year with a loss of 73.40%.
After slipping to below ₹50 in 2020, Praj Industries share price saw a strong recovery in the following years, closing the next four years in a bull run and delivering a cumulative gain of around 1,900%.
Year
Returns
2008
(-72.40%)
2009
65%
2010
(-20.30%)
2011
(-11%)
2012
(-37%)
2013
(-6.15%)
2014
34%
2015
52.3%
2016
(-13%)
2017
39%
2018
(-2%)
2019
(-6.5%)
2020
12.7%
2021
190%
2022
6.4%
2023
56.11%
2024
45%
2025
(-57.3%)
Source: Trendlyne
However, the rally fizzled out in early 2025, and the crisis deepened further amid the company’s weak financial performance. Persistent execution challenges and subdued demand for new ethanol plants following the achievement of the EBP 20 target continue to weigh on the domestic BioEnergy segment. Its external business also gets impacted due to external business US tariffs.
The company reported a 65% YoY drop in its consolidated net profit at ₹19.2 crore in Q2FY26, impacted by GenX-related higher other expenses. It had reported a net profit of ₹53 crore in the same period last year.
Though net profit dropped sharply on a YoY basis, it improved by 284% on a QoQ basis, as the company had posted ₹5 crore in the first quarter of FY26. Its revenue from operations during the reporting quarter stood at ₹842 crore, compared to ₹816 crore in Q2FY25. In Q1FY26, revenue was ₹640 crore.
At the operating level, the company posted an EBITDA of ₹56 crore, down from ₹86 crore in the year-ago quarter. EBITDA margins narrowed by 400 basis points to 7% but improved 300 basis points compared to the previous quarter.
Although the Praj Industries share price has fallen sharply, its long-term performance still looks impressive, as the stock is trading 205% higher over the last four years. In early January, the stock even touched a fresh record high of ₹875 apiece.
At current levels, the Praj Industries share price is trading at its lowest level since April 2023. As of the September-ending quarter, retail shareholders own a 34.8% stake in the company, while promoters, FIIs, and DIIs hold 32.8%, 17.5%, and 14.8%, respectively, according to BSE shareholding data.
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
