Apex Frozen freezes at 5% upper circuit, up 30% over issue price

NEW DELHI: Shares of Apex Frozen Foods hit upper circuit limit of 5 per cent of Rs 231.30 on Wednesday, to take their winning streak to third consecutive trading session. The scrip which got listed on Monday delivered a listing day gain of 21.20 per cent. On Wednesday, it locked at 5-per cent upper circuit limit for the two-day running.

The stock is now trading 32 per cent higher than its issue price of Rs 175.

Listed players such as Avanti Feeds, The Waterbase and Zeal Aqua are among key competitors of Apex Frozen. Return on net worth for Avanti Feeds stood at 34.78 per cent for FY17 on a standalone basis and 36.71 per cent on a consolidated basis. Smaller peers The Waterbase and Zeal Aqua have RoNW of 11.20 per cent and 4.83 per cent, respectively. In comparison, Apex Frozen reported an RoNW of 25.22 per cent. The size of the export market for shrimp stood at $ 3.1 billion in 2015-16.

Some estimates show shrimp exports grew at a CAGR of 33 per cent between FY10 and FY15. Volumes grew 22 per cent, while realisations rose 11 per cent. Rating agency CRISIL expects shrimp exports to grow at a CAGR of 17-19 per cent in value terms over the next five years, primarily driven by volumes.