AstraZeneca Pharma OFS begins at Rs 490/share; stock tanks 17%

NEW DELHI: AstraZeneca Pharma Ltd slipped over 17 per cent in opening trade on Tuesday, as the company launched its one-day offer-for-sale ( OFS) at a floor price of Rs 490/share.

The promoters of the company, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals A B Sweden, which holds 90 percent stake, plans to sell 37.5 lakh shares or 15 percent of the total outstanding through OFS at a floor price of Rs 490 a piece.

At 10:20 a.m., the stock was recouped some of its morning gains and was trading 14.16 per cent lower at Rs 685.60. It hit a low of Rs 660.05 and a high of Rs 724.80 in trade today.

AstraZeneca Pharma got bids for 14805 shares compared to 37.49 lakh shares on offer as of 10:15 a.m. The OFS is already subscribed 39 per cent at an indicative bid price of Rs 531.85 per share.

The OFS is being launched to meet market regulator SEBI's norm on minimum 25 per cent public shareholding by June 30 for private sector listed companies.