Adani Group Stocks Rally After SEBI Clears Allegations

Shares of Adani Group companies jumped up to 10 per cent on Friday following a clean chit from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) regarding claims made by US short-seller Hindenburg Research.

By 11:00 AM, Adani Total Gas Ltd led the gains with a 7.99 per cent rise to Rs 655.45.

Adani Power Ltd advanced 7.02 per cent to Rs 675.65, while Adani Enterprises Ltd climbed 3.68 per cent to close at Rs 2,490.40.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd touched Rs 1,429.60, up 1.19 per cent, and Adani Green Energy Ltd increased 2.96 per cent to Rs 1,007.85.

Adding to the optimism, Morgan Stanley initiated an ‘Overweight’ rating on Adani Power Ltd, assigning a target price of Rs 818, signalling a potential 29 per cent upside.

The brokerage cited timely project execution and new power purchase agreements as key growth drivers, projecting the company’s capacity and EBITDA to rise 2.5 times and three times, respectively, by FY2033.

Year to date, shares of Adani Ports & SEZ and Adani Power have surged by 17.14 per cent and 28.12 per cent, respectively.

In its final order, SEBI dismissed claims of hidden related-party transactions and fraud, rejecting allegations amplified by the short-seller.

The regulator concluded that the Adani Group did not breach any rules in routing funds through two private companies.

SEBI Probe Details

The probe, launched under a Supreme Court directive following the Hindenburg report in January 2023, examined transactions between listed Adani firms, Adani Ports & SEZ, Adani Power, and Adani Enterprises, and two private entities, Milestone Tradelinks and Rehvar Infrastructure.

Hindenburg had claimed that these private companies acted as a front to conceal transactions that should have been declared as related party transactions (RPTs).

However, SEBI’s detailed investigation found no basis for these allegations. Its key finding was based on the Companies (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations (LODR) in force from 2018 to 2023, which defined related party transactions only for direct dealings.

Although commercially linked, Milestone and Rehvar do not qualify as related parties under those regulations.

Also Read: Adani Power Surges As Morgan Stanley Initiates Coverage With ‘Overweight’ Rating