According to a regulatory filing, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the managing director of digital financial services firm One97 Communications NSE 2.64 percent, has purchased 1.7 lakh shares worth Rs 11 crore. Sharma purchased the shares on May 30-31, according to the company’s disclosures, which operates under the Paytm brand.
Sharma purchased 1,00,552 shares worth Rs 6.31 crore on May 30 and 71,469 shares worth Rs 4.68 crore on May 31.
In the afternoon session, the company’s stock was trading at Rs 625.75.
Sharma was not allowed to buy shares for at least six months after being a selling shareholder in Paytm’s IPO due to regulations, but now that the restriction has been lifted, he has purchased Paytm shares.
Sharma wrote a letter to shareholders in April in which he stated that the company will achieve operating EBITDA (EBITDA before ESOP cost) breakeven in the next six quarters.
“Our business momentum, the scale of monetization, and operating leverage give us hope. We expect this trend to continue, and I believe we will be EBITDA breakeven in the next six quarters (i.e., EBITDA before ESOP costs, and by September 2023), well ahead of most analysts’ expectations. Importantly, we will do so without jeopardizing any of our expansion plans “he penned.
In a May report, Goldman Sachs stated that the current share price represents a compelling entry point into India’s largest and fastest-growing fintech platforms.
The initial public offering (IPO) price of Paytm was Rs 2,150 per share, but after it was listed in November, it began to fall. It hit an all-time low of Rs 511 but has been trading in the Rs 600 range for quite some time.
Paytm ended the previous financial year on a high note, with revenue up 89 percent year on year to Rs 1,541 crore in the fourth quarter, and contribution profit up 210 percent year on year to Rs 539 crore.
Revenue from operations increased 77 percent year over year to Rs 4,974 crore in 2021-22, while contribution profit increased 313 percent to Rs 1,498 crore.
