Raymond pares gains on bourses; denies land sale report

MUMBAI: Reversing its early sharp gains, Raymond Ltd on Friday closed lower by 0.55 percent at Rs 299.90 on BSE after the company clarified it has not finalised any proposal for sale of 12 acres of its land at Thane.

In early trade, shares of the company had risen by 8.43 percent following a media report that said Raymond is looking to sell 12 acres of its erstwhile factory land outside Mumbai for around Rs 250 crore.

The company in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange said that at this "point of time it is premature to comment on the aforesaid media report and no such proposal has been finalised".

Profit-booking pulled down shares of Raymond on the National Stock Exchange as well, closing lower by 0.02 percent at Rs 302.

In terms of volume, 24 lakh shares of the company were traded on the two bourses.

As per the media report, in September, 2009, the firm announced its maiden realty venture at Thane. However, the project was held-up over the issue of compensation for the nearly 2,000-strong workforce at Raymond's Thane factory.

The company had initially planned options like developing the land by itself or in partnership before deciding to unlock some of its value through a part sale, it added.

The total land measures 125 acres, it said. Meanwhile, after a choppy session, the BSE sensitive index Sensex closed with a loss of 295.30 points at 18,211.52.