Equity Alert: Cairn India falls 2% as crude oil prices ease

[K.Karthik Raja]

Equity Alert: Cairn India falls 2% as crude oil prices ease
Equity Alert: Cairn India falls 2% as crude oil prices ease
MUMBAI--12:52PM--Cairn India, down 2% at 289 rupees, was among the
worst
hit on Nifty as easing crude oil prices spurred profit sales, dealers
said.
Crude oil prices were hovering around $132 a barrel on NYMEX,
lower than
the record high of $139.12 touched Friday. The contract closed down 2%
at
$131.31 a barrel Tuesday.
Analysts, however, remain positive on the stock as it is the best
play on
crude oil prices.
"Cairn India is the best play on oil prices in India and one of
the best in
Asia as 97% of its reserves are oil," Merrill Lynch said in a report.
The brokerage has upgraded the stock to "buy" from "neutral", and
raised its
price target to 344 rupees per share from its earlier target of 317
rupees.
So far today, 2.6 mln shares of Cairn have been traded on NSE.
June futures
of the stock were at a 2-point discount to the spot, with 4% rise in
open
interest.