Shares of Bharti Airtel fell 5.13% in the early trade after a report said that the promoter sold over 150 million shares via block deal on Tuesday. The stock hit a low of Rs 561 apiece on the BSE. However, the shares of the telecom operator recovered some of the losses and are currently trading at Rs 565, down 28 points, or 4.72%. The telecom firm's promoter Bharti Airtel sold 152 million shares today in a block deal, Mint reported. However, the details of the buyers are not available as of now, it added.
On Monday, there were reports that Bharti Telecom plans to raise $1 billion (around Rs 7,600 crore) through equity sale to become debt free. The promoter firm planned to offload 2.75 per cent stake in the telecom operator at floor price of Rs 558 per share, a discount of 6 per cent at Friday's closing price of Rs 593.2 apiece, through a block deal.
"Bharti Telecom has roped in JP Morgan for raising $1 billion by selling 150 million equity shares at a price of Rs 558 per cent per unit. It is a discount of six per cent on closing price of Rs 593.2 apiece as on May 22," news agency PTI quoted citing an unidentified source.
The $1 billion fund raise is expected to make the promoter of Bharti Airtel debt free. Bharti Telecom owns nearly 41 per cent stake in Bharti Airtel, while foreign promoter entities hold 21.46 per cent stake in the mobile telecom operator. The rest 37 per cent holding the company is owned by public shareholders. Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, and his family own around 52 per cent stake in Bharti Telecom.
Bharti Airtel shares climbed to a record Rs 598.8 last week after it posted a 14 per cent increase in user revenue in the quarter through March. In January, Bharti raised $3 billion from the sale of shares and convertible bonds to help pay additional airwave and license fees after telecom operators lost a court case.
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