The shares of Indus Towers surged more than 5 percent on September 5 after latest data on NSE showed that promoter Bharti Airtel bought nearly 68.76 lakh shares of the company between August 25 and September 1 in five tranches through open market operations.
Bharti Airtel is the largest promoter of Indus Towers, holding 50 percent stake in the company as on June 30, according to data on the latter's shareholding pattern available on NSE. Indus Towers shares gained 5 percent to trade at around Rs 342 apiece on September 5.
The acquisition price has not been disclosed yet. The market capitalization of Indus Towers currently stands at around Rs 89,025 crore, while that of Bharti Airtel is Rs 56,513 crore. The shares of the telecom company were up nearly 1 percent.
Earlier this month, Indus Towers announced that it has received approval to foray into African markets, beginning with Nigeria, Uganda, and Zambia as these markets offer attractive prospects for revenue diversification, operational scalability, and long-term value creation. This would mark the first-ever overseas expansion for Indus Towers.
"Indus Towers will leverage its robust financial position and anchor customer relationship with Bharti Airtel to establish a strong and competitive presence in these regions. As part of its broader growth strategy, the company will continue to evaluate expansion opportunities in other African markets where Airtel has an established presence," it said.
Citi maintained a 'Buy' rating on Indus Towers with a target price of Rs 460 per share.. The latest target price implies an upside potential of nearly 42 percent from the previous closing price.
Indus Towers shares have declined nearly 2 percent in the past one month, and around 24 percent in the past one year. The stock has gained nearly 46 percent in the past five years. Its P/E ratio currently stands at 8.77.
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