Clarios ARBL sells entire 14% in Amara Raja Batteries via block deal; Kotak MF, Societe Generale pitch in as buyers

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Clarios ARBL Holding has sold entire stake in battery maker Amara Raja Batteries through bulk deals on Tuesday. According to bulk deal data available with the exchanges, Clarios ARBL has offloaded about 2.39 crore shares or 14% stake in the company at a price of Rs 652.9. Further, Kotak Mutual Fund, Nippon India Mutual Fund, Sociere Generale, Tata AIA Life Insurance, Pinebridge Funds have picked up stake in the company, exchange data showed.

According to latest shareholding data, the company is majority owned by public shareholders at 71.94% stake, while promoters own the rest 28.06%. Among the public shareholders, mutual funds have about 2.47%, while LIC has 7.23%. Meanwhile, foreign investors own about 20.5% in the company.

Earlier during the day, the company's shares fell over 6%, closing at Rs 640.9 on reports of the bulk deal. Amara Raja Batteries is one of the largest manufacturers of lead-acid batteries for both industrial and automotive applications in the Indian storage battery industry. The company is a preferred supplier to major telecom service providers, telecom equipment manufacturers, the UPS sector, Indian Railways and to the power, oil and Gas, among other industry segments.

Amara Raja shares have outperformed the Nifty50 and have given returns of 36% over a 12 month period versus 21% returned by the index. The stock has been relatively low on volatility and traded with a 1 month beta of 0.7. For the quarter ended March, the company reported revenue of Rs 2,429 crore, which was up 10% year-on-year from 2,197 crore posted in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.