Mumbai, July 7: Only three of the eight listed navratnas have outperformed the Sensex in the last one year. As on July 4, 1997 only 3 navratnas, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) had outstripped the 16.8 per cent gain of the BSE-30 index when compared with the figure on July 4, 1996.The Bhel scrip has made a whopping 123.23 per cent increase in its share price as on July 4, 1997 (date when these PSUs were unchained) as compared with its share price on July 4, 1996.

Its market capitalisation as on July 4, 1997 is Rs 9821 crore. ONGC on the other hand has recorded a gain of 42.9 per cent in its share price over the period.

The share price has jumped from Rs 225.50 to Rs 322.25. The market capitalisation of the scrip continues to be the highest among Indian companies at Rs 45,950 crore.

BPCL has gained 35.63 per cent. The scrip was quoted at Rs 334 on July 4, 1996 and is currently trading at Rs 453. Its market capitalisation stands at Rs 6,795 crore.

The Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) scrip has recorded a gain of 16 per cent over the period. It was hovering around the Rs 750 on July 4, 1996 and on July 4 this year the scrip had touched Rs 870. The market capitalisation of the company currently stands at Rs 32,704 crore.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) has recorded an increase of 14.68 per cent in its share price over the previous year. The scrip was traded at Rs 395 on July 4 last year and closed at Rs 453 on July 4 this year. The market capitalisation of HPCL is Rs 9,461 crore.

VSNL has, however, recorded a fall in its share price over the past year. It closed on July 4 this year at Rs 1,125 as against the close of Rs 1,350 on the same date last year.

The VSNL GDR however was quoted at a premium of 30.36 per cent over its underlying share price as on July 4, 1997. The domestic share price has fallen following the GDR issue of the telecom giant as market experts point out that the GDRs are a more attractive buy than the underlying shares. The steel giant, Steel Authority of India Ltd (Sail), has performed miserably at the markets over the past year. Although the scrip has lost 28.12 per cent over the past year, it has recovered remarkably over the past few days. As on June 27, 1997 the scrip had lost 42 per cent over the corresponding date of the previous year.

Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd (IPCL), on the other hand lost 4.62 per cent in its scrip price over the period under review. The market capitalisation of the company stands at Rs 3483.30 crore. One navratna, National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) is not listed.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.