MRPL Q2 profit nearly triples; restart still undated

Mangalore Refinery reported Q2 FY27 profit of Rs 1,881 crore, nearly triple the Rs 639 crore a year earlier, and declared a Rs 3 interim dividend. The quarter ended on 30 September, the day the Coker Hydrotreater unit fire happened, so the profit largely predates the damage. None of the sources I checked gives a restart date for the unit. Q2 FY27 (as reported; two sources differ): Net profit: Rs 1,881 crore (Kotak Neo, standalone) or Rs 1,901 crore (Univest, consolidated), against Rs 639 crore or Rs 627 crore a year earlier Revenue: Rs 35,590 crore (Kotak Neo, standalone) or Rs 32,516 crore (Univest, consolidated) Interim dividend: Rs 3 a share, declared on 14 October MRPL [][***** closed at Rs 170.36 on 19 October on StockGro, down 0.5 percent from Rs 171.29. The stock fell about 5 percent on 15 October, the day of the result, and has not recovered that loss. At 6.8 times trailing earnings, against a sector P/E of 13.0, the stock looks cheap on earnings, but the quarter predates the fire, so the earnings do not yet show the damage. My view: hold for holders, not a fresh entry. The result is strong, but it covers the quarter before the unit failed. Fresh money still waits for a dated restart of the Coker Hydrotreater unit, and no source has given one. Without a date, no fresh money. My exit is a close below Rs 162.40, the 30 September intraday low, or a restart date after 31 December, as set in my 5 October post. Neither has been hit. Disclosure: Vijay Kumar Gupta, SEBI Registered Research Analyst, INH000020226, Vijay Gupta Advisory. SEBI registration and NISM certification do not guarantee performance or assure returns. Securities markets are subject to market risks. No holdings in the subject company.