Trent still a pricey bet on fast fashion retail

The stock of fashion and lifestyle retailer Trent has been one of the biggest losers among index stocks in the past six months.

- KRISHNA KANT

The stock closed at ₹5,063 on Monday, and was up about 3 per cent on Tuesday at around ₹5,200.

This is nearly a 38 per cent drop from its all-time high of ₹8,345 on October 14, 2024.

In comparison, the benchmark Nifty 50 index is down around 10 per cent from its all-time high in September 2024.

The sharp decline in Trent's share price from its all-time high is attributed to its pricey valuation and a slowdown in its revenues and profit growth in recent quarters.

The stock was trading at a trailing price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of nearly 200 times at the end of September 2024, one of the highest among largecap stocks.

This also made Trent the most expensive stock in the retail sector ahead of Avenue Supermarts which operates the DMart chain of supermarkets.

The selloff has since cooled Trent's valuation, though it is still trading at a trailing P/E of 121x.