Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, has seen its cash reserves skyrocket to an impressive $25 billion (₹2.1 lakh crore) as of March 2024. This milestone positions RIL with the highest cash reserves among India’s listed companies. The cash and cash equivalents of RIL increased by nearly ₹16,000 crore from the previous quarter.
To put this into perspective, around 78% of Nifty200 companies have a market capitalization of less than ₹2 lakh crore, and only 8% of them report revenues exceeding ₹2 lakh crore in FY24.
During the fiscal year, RIL invested ₹1.32 lakh crore ($15.8 billion) in capital expenditure. This spending focused on the nationwide rollout of 5G, expansion of retail infrastructure, and ventures into new energy sectors. As of March 2024, RIL’s net debt stood at $13.9 billion (₹1.2 lakh crore), and the company aims to maintain a net debt to EBITDA ratio of less than 1x.
According to JP Morgan, RIL’s retail and telecom businesses contribute to 50% of the company’s total consolidated EBITDA. The brokerage forecasts that these sectors will account for 95% of RIL’s EBITDA growth over the next three years. “RIL has operated at material negative free cash flow (FCF) for the last three years, driven by spending in Telecom. As that fades, with an EBITDA run-rate of $20 billion a year, the company is expected to deliver positive free cash flow for the next three years,” noted JP Morgan in an investor briefing.
In FY24, RIL reported its highest-ever revenue, exceeding ₹9 lakh crore, driven by strong performance in its consumer and upstream businesses. It also became the first Indian company to surpass the ₹1 lakh crore mark in pre-tax profit. The company’s net profit rose by 7.3% to ₹79,020 crore ($9.5 billion).
On the stock market, shares of Reliance Industries surged by 2.2% on Friday, reaching a new record high of ₹3,197.65 on the NSE. Since the beginning of the year, the stock has rallied by 23%, outpacing the benchmark Nifty50, which has gained 12% in the same period.
