Apis Growth, Madison Capital sell stake in Star Health via block deal

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Mint.The transaction value reportedly ranged between $250 million and $270 million, the persons said.Around 41.3 million shares changed hands on the National Stock Exchange, according to Bloomberg.The shares of the company rose as much as 6.3% intraday on Thursday, hitting their highest levels since February 2023.ICICI Securities is managing the sale process.This divestment follows Apis Growth's previous sale of 10 million shares of Star Health for ₹553 crore in March 2024.As of 31 March, Apis Growth held a 2.61% stake, while MIO Star and MIO IV Star (both linked to Madison Capital) held 2.21% and 2.39% stakes respectively in Star Health.The positive investor sentiment surrounding Star Health can be partly attributed to the company's strong financial performance. The company reported a 40% increase in net profit for the fourth quarter ended March, at ₹142 crore, compared to ₹102 crore in the same quarter the previous year.The company's gross written premium also witnessed a significant rise, reaching ₹4,968 crore against ₹4,199 crore in the year-ago period.

Its net premium increased to ₹4,570 crore as compared to ₹3,993 crore.Star Health maintained a 33% market share in the retail health insurance sector in FY24. The company's market share among general insurance companies also grew by 22 basis points to 5.26% in the year.The insurer improved its cashless claims payout ratio to 87% of total claims in FY24, compared to 80% in FY23.

The company added over 75,000 agents in FY24, bringing the total number of agents servicing customers to over 7 lakh.Star Health's shares have been on a downward trend since their December 2021 debut, failing to recapture their IPO price of ₹900. They closed at ₹539.30 on 22 May, a decline of