Ola Electric rival Ather Energy shares fall nearly 8% on first day after listing 2.2% above IPO price

Ather Energy, the electric vehicle manufacturer competing with Ola Electric, saw its shares decline sharply on the first day of trading, despite listing at a slight premium to its initial public offering price.

The stock opened at Rs 328 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), 2.18% above the issue price of Rs 321. On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), it debuted at Rs 326.05, reflecting a 1.57% premium. However, sustained selling pressure quickly eroded early gains.

By the end of trading day, its first day, shares had slipped to Rs 302.30 on the NSE—a decline of 7.84% from the open—and to Rs 302.50 on the BSE, marking a 7.22% fall. During intraday trading, the stock reached a high of Rs 333 and a low of Rs 299.10 on the NSE. On the BSE, it peaked at Rs 332.90 before dropping to a low of Rs 300.

Based on the closing of the share price, the company's market capitalisation stood at Rs 11,266.90 crore on BSE and Rs 11,173.79 crore on NSE.

The listing comes on the heels of a tepid IPO response. The offering was subscribed just 1.5 times, with qualified institutional buyers subscribing at 1.76 times and retail investors at 1.89 times. Non-institutional investors took up only 69% of their allotted quota, while the employee segment drew stronger interest, with subscriptions reaching 5.43 times the allocation.

Despite its prominent brand and growing product line in the electric two-wheeler segment, Ather Energy continues to face profitability challenges.

The company posted a loss before tax of Rs 1,059.7 crore in FY24, widening from Rs 864.5 crore in FY23 and Rs 344.1 crore in FY22. Revenue growth remained flat. Ather reported operating revenue of Rs 1,753.8 crore in FY24, marginally lower than the Rs 1,780.9 crore posted a year earlier.