Aditya Birla Group’s UltraTech Cement Ltd. announced it was making a non-controlling financial investment to pick up 23% equity stake in India Cements Ltd (ICL). Block deal data showed UltraTech initially bought 6.02 crore ICL shares, or 19.4% stake.
Earlier in the day, UltraTech’s Board approved the purchase of up to 7.06 crore equity shares of ICL at up to ₹267 apiece.
Having acquired 19.4%, the UltraTech board met again on Thursday and approved acquisition of 3.4%, or 1.04 crore equity shares, up to ₹285 apiece. This transaction is expected to be completed within a month, the cement maker said in a regulatory filing.
The cost of the entire 23% stake is estimated at about ₹1,900 crore.
Damani sells stake
While promoter N. Srinivasan and his family would still remain the largest shareholders in ICL with 28.4% stake, UltraTech will become the second-largest shareholder, after reportedly purchasing the entire stake of serial investor Radhakishnan Damani and his associates.
As per ICL’s shareholding pattern as of March, Mr. Damani and Gopikishan Shivkishan Damani collectively held 20.78% stake in the company. Another 2% was owned by Damani-linked entities.
Southern markets
ICL has a capacity of 14.45 MTPA with eight cement plants located in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Rajasthan.
ICL shares surged 11.5% on the BSE to close at ₹293.15, while UltraTech rose 5.07% to ₹11,714.80.
Published - June 27, 2024 01:13 pm IST
