LIC clocks record share sales in Q1

livemint.com:

₹25,900 crore. According to a research by Mint based on regulatory filings of 300 companies, in April-June, LIC sold shares in at least 87 leading Indian companies worth ₹25,900 crore—the highest ever for LIC in the first quarter of a financial year.

Through share sales, LIC has booked a profit of ₹30,000 crore in the first quarter alone, surpassing all past records for the first quarter of a fiscal year, according to a person aware of the development. The insurer, according to the Mint research, yielded maximum gains by selling a bulk of the shares in bluechip companies, including fast-moving consumer goods major Hindustan Unilever Ltd ( ₹1,893.27 crore), Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd ( ₹1,469 crore), car-maker Maruti Suzuki India Ltd ( ₹1,053 crore), cement manufacturer Ultratech Cement Ltd ( ₹1,312 crore), engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro Ltd ( ₹1,260 crore), Britannia Industries Ltd ( ₹996 crore) and Bajaj Auto Ltd ( ₹2,025.8 crore).

Besides, as stocks of most leading listed companies posted steady gains during the quarter, LIC, as a part of its investment strategy, sold the shares of food giant Nestle India Ltd for ₹981 crore, NTPC Ltd ( ₹958.8 crore), Titan Co. Ltd ( ₹877.9 crore) and Power Grid Corp.

Ltd ( ₹762.5 crore). Furthermore, LIC pared holdings in HDFC Bank Ltd ( ₹701.6 crore), ICICI Bank Ltd ( ₹574.7 crore), JSW Steel Ltd ( ₹697.4 crore) and state-run mining major NMDC Ltd ( ₹755.8 crore), according to the Mint research.