NEW DELHI: Adani Group’s trusted investor - GQG Partners- has increased its stake in Ambuja Cements by 1 per cent as it purchased shares worth Rs 1,679 crore on Friday. The stake was acquired via block deals that saw the Adani family selling shares worth Rs 4,251 crore in Ambuja Cements.
This purchase has increased GQG Partners' total stake in Ambuja Cements to 2.4 per cent. USA-based GQG had first invested in Adani Group in March 2023 when its 10 listed companies were bleeding due to a Hindenburg Research report.
Besides GQG, National Pension System Trust and SBI Life Insurance were the other main buyers, acquiring Ambuja shares worth Rs 525 crore and Rs 500 crore, respectively. The shares were sold at Rs 625.5 each. Ambuja Cement shares closed at Rs 635 apiece on Friday at the NSE. Following the share sale, the Adani family’s stake in the cement company has come down to 67.3 per cent.
Before Friday’s block deals, the Adani family owned a 70.33 per cent stake in Ambuja, which it acquired from Swiss firm Holcim in May 2022 and became the country’s second-largest cement manufacturer overnight.
This share sale is seen as a part of the Adani family's strategy to balance its $125 billion empire whose operation ranges from managing airports to running the power generating units.
On Thursday TNIE reported that the promoters of Adani Group are likely to reduce their stake in three group entities – Adani Power, Ambuja Cement and Adani Wilmar – to raise Rs 42,000 crore. The money thus raised will be used to reduce the debt of the group, sources said. Adani Group has a total debt of Rs 1.81 lakh crore as of 31 March 2024.
The promoter family is likely to offload a significant stake in Adani Power. The Adani family, which owns a 71.71 per cent stake in Adani Power, may sell up to a 5 per cent stake in the electricity generation firm. Adani Power has a market cap of Rs 2.6 lakh crore. The promoters are also expected to sell shares in FMCG firm Adani Wilmar.
The stake sale comes a month after the Adani family increased their stake in five group companies - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd, Adani Enterprises Ltd, Ambuja Cements Ltd, Adani Power Ltd, and Adani Green Energy Ltd - by investing over Rs 23,000 crore during the April-June quarter.