Shares of Vodafone Idea began trading under pressure on Monday, opening at ₹12.64, a decrease of 2.39 per cent or ₹0.31 by 10:07 a.m., despite the stock being near its 52-week high of ₹13.33 reached just last Thursday. Sell orders outnumbered buy orders nearly two to one, with 64.98 per cent of the 15.44 crore shares traded being sold. The total traded value stood at ₹720 crore by early morning.
The decline in share price comes even as Vodafone Idea (Vi) reported a headline net profit of ₹51,986 crore for Q4FY26, marking its first profit in years. This profit was largely attributed to a one-time exceptional gain of ₹55,622 crore resulting from a downward revision of its Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) dues by the Department of Telecommunications. Excluding this accounting gain, the company posted an adjusted loss of ₹5,521 crore for the quarter.
A significant near-term catalyst for the stock has been the board’s approval on May 16 to issue up to 430 crore warrants to Suryaja Investments Pte. Ltd., a Singapore-based entity of the Aditya Birla Group, at a price of ₹11 per warrant, aggregating to ₹4,730 crore. Upon full conversion, Suryaja Investments would hold a 3.82 per cent stake in the company. Shareholder approval for this move is being sought at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) on June 11.
Analysts view the Birla investment as necessary but insufficient. JM Financial has maintained an ADD rating with a revised target price of ₹14, up from ₹9 following the reduction of AGR debt by approximately ₹550 billion. The firm highlighted that the critical factor remains lenders’ approval for a pending ₹25,000 crore debt raise, which is essential for Vodafone Idea to implement its ₹45,000 crore network capital expenditure plan through FY29 and to stop subscriber losses.
Motilal Oswal has retained a Neutral stance on the stock, currently priced at ₹13. The firm noted that while the announcement regarding Birla warrants is sentimentally positive, the urgency of securing accelerated debt mobilization is crucial for Vodafone Idea’s ability to compete effectively against rivals Jio and Airtel.
Over the past year, the stock has increased by 72 per cent and by 32 per cent in the last month, reflecting renewed investor interest following the resolution of AGR dues. However, with spectrum dues totaling ₹1,27,400 crore still outstanding and the company experiencing adjusted losses for eight consecutive quarters, the road to financial sustainability remains challenging.
Published on May 18, 2026.
