Shares of Neuland Laboratories plunged 8 percent on December 12 after a block deal worth Rs 780.30 crore took place on the exchanges, with Smallcap World Fund being the likely seller. Around 4.9 lakh shares, making up an 3.8 percent stake in Neuland Labs, changed hands at an average price of Rs 15,900 per share, an over 6 percent discount from Wednesday's close.
At 09.25 am, shares of Neuland Labs were trading at Rs 16,104 on the NSE. The block deal also tipped off a surge in trading volumes in the counter. As much as seven lakh shares changed hands on the exchanges so far, already far ahead of the one-month daily traded average of 52,000 shares.
While Moneycontrol could not immediately identify the parties involved in the transaction, ET-Now had reported that Smallcap World Fund was planning to offload a 3.8 percent stake in the CDMO company through a block deal. The block trade was aimed to raise Rs 747 crore for the investor, the report stated.
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With this block deal, Smallcap World Fund, which owned a 3.77 percent stake in Neuland Laboratories, likely made an exit.
The stake sale in Neuland Labs coincides with a more than 10 percent decline in the stock over the past week. The correction is largely driven by lingering uncertainty surrounding the US Biosecure Act, a critical catalyst that could have accelerated the China+1 strategy among US drug innovators.
The Act’s exclusion from a key defence bill signals a possible easing of the US stance on Chinese biotech. As the defence bill was considered the most feasible pathway for the Act's approval in 2024, its failure to pass this year dampened sentiment for Indian CDMO players.
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