Finolex Cables surged nearly 12% in Tuesday afternoon trading after the company reported strong growth

$FINCABLES Shares of Finolex Cables surged nearly 12% in Tuesday afternoon trading after the company reported strong growth in its fiscal first-quarter earnings, driven by higher sales across key business segments. Net profit rose 53% year-on-year, while operating profit jumped 79%. Finolex Cables shares were trading at Rs 1,181.50, up 11.7% on the day, making the stock one of the top small-cap gainers. The rally has lifted the stock's year-to-date gain to 50.4%, compared with a 6.5% decline in the Nifty 50 over the same period. At the prevailing price, the company had a market capitalisation of around Rs 18,000 crore. For the April-June quarter, Finolex Cables reported a consolidated net profit up 53% in the corresponding period last year. Revenue increased 44.3% year-on-year. The company attributed the revenue growth to higher volumes across its key segments. Electrical wire volumes increased 7%, supported by strong demand from the agricultural, industrial and solar sectors. The communication cables business also recorded higher volumes, with optic fibre cable sales significantly above the year-ago level. Finolex Cables said improved realisations further supported margins in the segment. However, operations at the company's copper rod plant remained suspended during the quarter due to limited availability of LPG and PNG amid the ongoing war in the Middle East. The fuel shortage also affected volumes in some of the company's newer product categories. With copper prices remaining elevated during the quarter, Finolex Cables raised its selling prices in May to offset the impact. Meanwhile, the company said expansion of its fibre draw facility remains on schedule. The new plant, which has a capacity of 4 million fibre kilometres, is expected to reach full capacity by the third quarter of the current fiscal year.