IRFC, RVNL and other railway stocks continue record run, up between 50-70% in January

Shares of IRFC, Rail Vikas Nigam and other railway companies continued to surge on Saturday, extending their record breaking run. The stocks have gained anywhere between 50% to 70% in the month of January itself.

IRFC's shares are up another 9% on Saturday, taking its market capitalisation to 2.28 lakh crore, higher than Power Grid and 21 other Nifty companies. The stock has gained in nine out of the last 10 trading sessions, during which it has risen from ₹99 to its current price of ₹175.

Shares of RVNL are also up for the 10th day in a row, during which the stock has gained 75%. The stock is also trading on heavy volumes, with current volumes being 4x higher than its 20-day average at this time of the day.

Shares of Railtel, IRCTC and IRCON International are also trading with gains between 3% to 10%. IRCON's shares are up in nine out of the last 10 trading sessions, during which it has gained close to 40%.

What needs to be kept in mind is that IRFC has a low float in the market as the government holds over 86% stake. Therefore, any move on either side on the stock can be on the extreme side, warranting caution.

In an interaction with CNBC-TV18's Shereen Bhan at the World Economic Forum 2024 in Davos, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said progress in expansion and modernisation of the railways is huge.

"Last year we added 5,200 kms of new tracks. That’s like adding the entire Swiss network in one year. We are now aiming at a pace of 15 kms of tracks a day," he said. The minister further said that out of the ₹2.4 lakh crore capex plan, 77% has been completed as of date.

Vaishnaw also said that there is huge interest among international players to participate in the Kavach technology as they see it better than established technology.

"People see that by participating in Kavach, they will get opportunity in North America, Australia, South Africa, south east Asian markets," the minister said.