A ₹24 Stock vs a ₹1,34,000 Stock — Which One's Actually "Cheaper"?

Quick question. Which sounds cheaper: a stock priced at ₹24, or one priced at ₹1,34,350? Most people say the ₹24 one without even thinking twice. That instinct is wrong — and it's one of the most common mistakes new investors make. Here's the reality.

trades at ₹1,34,350 a share, with a P/E of around 24. trades at ₹24 a share, with a P/E of around 21-22. One price is over 5,000 times higher than the other. And yet, valuation-wise, they're almost neck and neck. Why? Share price alone doesn't tell you if something's cheap. It just tells you how many pieces a company's value has been sliced into. Companies often keep prices low — or split shares — on purpose, to boost liquidity and let more retail investors actually afford to participate. It's a business decision, not a value signal. So what actually tells you if a stock is cheap? Ratios like P/E — price relative to earnings. That's what strips away the illusion of the price tag and shows you real value. A ₹24 stock at 22x earnings can be just as "expensive" as a ₹1.34 lakh stock at 24x earnings. Same ballpark, wildly different sticker price. Here's the takeaway, and it's worth remembering every time you scroll through a stock screener: never judge a stock by its price tag alone. A ₹24 stock isn't automatically a bargain. A ₹1 lakh+ stock isn't automatically out of reach. Always look past the number on the screen and check what you're actually paying for.