FIIs pick up 7% in Sintex for Rs 300 cr

MUMBAI: Lehman Brothers, HSBC and Merrill Lynch have come together to pick up a 7% stake in Sintex Industries for nearly Rs 300 crore. The stake was bought from one of the company’s existing shareholders Lightwood Investment which sold 14% of its holding for Rs 560 crore in the open market on Thursday. The transaction was done at Rs 350 per share on a day when Sintex Industries closed 1.7% higher at Rs 361 on the BSE.

Apart from Lehman Brothers, HSBC and Merrill Lynch, the list of investors also includes Master Trust Bank of Japan and Batterymarch Financial Management. They bought a total of 83 lakh shares. While Lightwood Investment sold a total of 1.6 crore shares, the identity of buyers of the remaining 77 lakh shares is not known.

In a separate deal on Friday, Lightwood Investment sold additional one crore shares for Rs 350 crore. The buyers were HSBC Global Investment (31 lakh shares), ABN Amro Bank (16.6 lakh shares), SBI MF (8.5 lakh shares) and HDFC Trustee (7 lakh shares).

Lightwood Investment, a subsidiary of leading global private equity firm Warburg Pincus, had picked up a 17% stake in Sintex in 2004, which was followed by an open offer for acquiring an additional 20% equity in the company at Rs 286.4 per share. Before Thursday’s deal, Lightwood Investment held a 26% stake in Sintex, which has now fallen to 12%.

As on June 30, 2007, foreign institutional investors held nearly 15% stake in Sintex. Promoters have a 33% holding while foreign corporate bodies were in possession of 26% of the equity capital. The public holding stood at 8.6%.

Sintex Industries is a leading manufacturer of moulded plastic products for homes and industries, sanitation facilities and base towers shelters. Its plastic business accounts for a significant part of its revenue while textile business contributes to the company’s income. Sintex also has some presence in the automotive segment, making fuel tanks for off-road vehicles.