SpiceJet shares jump 5% as HDFC Trustee Company picks stake

New Delhi: Shares of SpiceJet gained 5 per cent in Tuesday's trade after HDFC Trustee Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of HDFC, bought 34 million shares or a 5.45 per cent stake in low-fare airline.

HDFC Trustee Company Limited is the trustee to HDFC Mutual Fund, the country’s largest.

The shares were bought from the open market.


The stock has fallen 67.97 per cent year-to-date as India’s airlines had to suspend operations due to a 21-day lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday to prevent the spread the Coronavirus.

India’s carriers, like their global peers, have suffered a huge impact on their businesses as travel has almost completely eroded due to the pandemic. Sydney-based aviation consultant CAPA has estimated a $1.75 billion loss for Indian carriers in April-June of FY21.

It estimates that many carriers will go bankrupt by the end of May if they cannot find support and further predicted that about half of all global airlines could go out of business before the end of the year.

The shares of the company closed 5 per cent higher at Rs 36.90 on BSE.