IndiGo stock down 3% after 6.7% stake changes hands; Rakesh Gangwal likely seller

The IndiGo stock has gained nearly 25 percent in the past six months.

Shares of InterGlobe Aviation, which operates IndiGo, declined 3 percent in early trade after 2.6 crore shares, representing a 6.7 percent stake, in India's biggest airline changed hands in a block deal. The deal was valued Rs 7,823 crore.

Moneycontrol couldn't immediately identify the seller or the buyer but it reported on March 7 that co-founder Rakesh Gangwal was looking to sell a 3.3 percent stake in the company to raise around Rs 3,723 crore.

A CNBC-TV18 report later said that Gangwal was considering selling a 5.8 percent stake. Moneycontrol couldn't verify the report independently.

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Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, and Goldman Sachs were the investment banks advising Gangwal on the transaction, the Moneycontrol report said.

According to stock exchange data, Gangwal and his family trust collectively own around 25 percent of InterGlobe Aviation. The co-founder stepped down in February 2022 and announced plans to dilute his family’s stake in a dispersed manner.

In February, the Gangwal family sold a 4 percent stake for Rs 2,900 crore and again sold a 2.8 percent stake, worth Rs 2,000 crore, in September. The most recent block deal took place in August where the family divested a stake worth $450 million, the largest block deal yet.

In the December quarter, the airline posted a 111 percent jump in net profit, helped by continued demand for air travel and a fuel surcharge introduced in October. Net profit came in at Rs 2,998.12 crore against Rs 1,422.6 crore reported during the same period last year. Its revenue from operations increased 30 percent to Rs 19,452.15 crore.

At 9.58 am, the stock has reversed the losses and was trading at Rs 3,131.85 on the National Stock Exchange, up (0.84 percent from previous close.