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Journalism of Courage
Shares of One 97 Communications, which owns the Paytm brand, fell sharply by over 6 per cent on Monday to hit its all-time low of Rs 1,151 before closing at Rs 1,157.9. The shares of the came under pressure following news that HDFC Mutual fund, one of the four mutual funds that were anchor investors in its IPO, significantly reduced its holding of Paytm across two schemes in the month ended December 2021.
The fall
Paytm fell 6 per cent Monday and they have lost 13 per cent since December 31, 2021. While MFs held 0.81 per cent in the company as of November 17, 2021, disclosure of reduction in holding by HDFC Mutual fund in the company, weakened sentiment. “When the fund manager believes the stock may continue to trade low over the near to mid-term, they book losses and exit,” said a fund manager. A HDFC MF spokesperson declined to comment as fund houses do not comment on stock-specific investment decisions. Macquarie cut its price target by 25 per cent to Rs 900 from around Rs 1,200, retaining its ‘underperform’ rating.
Paytm responds
The number of loans disbursed through the Paytm platform rose 401 per cent year-on-year to 4.4 million loans in the third quarter of FY 2022. “… In Q3FY22, value of loans disbursed via our platform during the quarter was Rs 2,180 crore (run-rate of $1.2 billion), an increase of 365 per cent. We have seen stellar growth in … lending products…,” Paytm said.
