Institutional players lap up NHPC issue; retail bids to open today

MUMBAI: The offer for sale (OFS) of NHPC, the first divestment from the government in the current fiscal, was lapped up by institutional investors. The portion reserved for these investors was subscribed 1.55 times on Wednesday. The retail investor portion will be open for bids on Thursday.

On Wednesday, institutions bid for 156 crore shares against the 100 crore shares reserved for them. Majority of the bids came in at the floor price of Rs 21.75 per share according to BSE data. The minimum bid price was a 6% discount to the stock’s Tuesday’s closing price. Shares of NHPC declined 6.5% to Rs 21.55 on Wednesday. Retail investors will receive shares at a 5% discount to the price at which bids are accepted.

The government is planning to sell 11.36% stake in NHPC to raise about Rs 2,735 crore through OFS. Post OFS, the government’s stake will come down to 74.6% from the current 85.96%. The government aims to raise Rs 56,500 crore by selling stakes in state-owned enterprises in 2016-17.