Shares of JustDial jumped more than 10% after the market opened on January 16 after the company reported a 287.7% year-on-year increase in net profit to Rs 75.32 crore in Q3FY23.

Net income from operations rose 39.32% to Rs 221.37 crore in the current quarter compared to Rs 158.89 crore in the preceding quarter.

The stock was quoted at Rs 644.30 per share on the NSE at 9:20 am, up 10%.

The volume of 518,072 transactions was double the 20-day average of 201,460 transactions. The last time the stock had a one-day gain of 10% was April 12, 2022. Before that, it rose more than 13% on January 20, 2022.

The online classifieds company posted an adjusted operating EBITDA (excluding ESOP charge) of Rs 29.4 crore, up 194% YoY and 51.1% QoQ.

“The company ramped up hiring across technology, content, sales and marketing teams over the first 3-4 quarters, which led to higher staff expenses in recent quarters,” JustDial said in an exchange filing.

“However, operating expense growth remains contained in Q3FY23, and operating leverage is in play,” it added.

Total traffic (unique visitors) for the quarter increased 9.8% year-over-year to 156.8 million, and full active listings increased 11.4% year-over-year to 35 million.

ICICI Securities has a buy rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 750 per share. “The stock is valued at ~5x 1-year forward EV/EBITDA,” it noted.

The company has a cash balance of Rs 3,934 crore, while its market capitalization is around Rs 5,300 crore. Foreign brokerage Citi also has a buy rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 735.