Jio Platforms closes 27% above issue price on debut at Rs 1,419, lifting Reliance Group past Tata Group

The shares rose in the afternoon. By 2:51 pm they were at Rs 1,414.30, up 4.15 per cent on the listing price, and a little after 3 pm the market value crossed Rs 13 lakh crore. The NSE settlement was at 3:47 pm at Rs 1,419.

For an applicant who received a lot of 12 shares, which cost Rs 13,428 at the issue price, the listing price meant a value of Rs 16,296, a gain of Rs 2,868. At the closing price the lot was worth Rs 17,028, a gain of Rs 3,600.

The ranking of the groups

The debut changed the table of the largest business groups. At the listing price Jio Platforms was valued at about Rs 12.5 lakh crore, and one count put the listed companies of Reliance Group at Rs 28.9 lakh crore, against Rs 25.6 lakh crore for Tata Group and Rs 16.6 lakh crore for Adani Group. That count leaves out Jio Financial Services. After the close, Bloomberg reported a gain of almost 27 per cent for Jio and put Reliance Group above Rs 30.5 lakh crore, against about Rs 25 lakh crore for Tata Group.

Reliance Industries, with a market value of about Rs 15.94 lakh crore, remains India's most valuable listed company, and Jio Platforms is now the second most valuable. The two together were valued at Rs 28.7 lakh crore at the listing price, which is Rs 3.1 lakh crore more than all the listed companies of Tata Group combined. Tata Group had been at the top for most of the past decade. The exact figures vary by source, because they depend on the time of day, the share count used and which group companies are counted.

The ceremony and the message

The listing bell was rung at the NSE in Mumbai, with Mukesh Ambani, Nita Ambani, Akash Ambani, Isha Ambani and Anant Ambani present. Akash Ambani, the managing director of Jio Platforms, told employees that the listing is not a finish line but a starting line, and said that the response to the issue surpassed the company's imagination. He said the aim is to make Jio bigger, better and more meaningful for India.

Jio Platforms became the most widely held stock in the country, with about 79.8 lakh shareholders, ahead of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles at 61.2 lakh, Vodafone Idea at 57.9 lakh, Yes Bank at 57.6 lakh and Suzlon Energy at 56.0 lakh. The issue had been subscribed 22.19 times overall, though only 2.72 times in the retail category, so many small applicants did not get shares.

Jio Platforms will announce its results for the September quarter on 30 October, which will be the first set of numbers it publishes as a listed company. Analysts will look at the average revenue per user, the growth in home broadband and how much the company earns from services beyond mobile connectivity, since its valuation rests on growth in those areas.

Share prices move every day, and a gain on the first day does not say anything certain about the months to come. The group rankings will also change with the daily prices of the companies in them. This article is for information and is not investment advice.