Business News at 05:30 pm on 27th February, 2024

Let’s begin…Shares of One97 Communication, the parent firm of Paytm, rose 5% to touch the upper circuit of Rs 449.50 from the previous close of Rs 428.10. However, the shares came off the highs to Rs 427.90. The surge in the company’s share came after Vijay Shekhar Sharma stepped down from the position of Chairman. OCL (One97 Communication Limited) withdraws its nominee from the Paytm Payments Bank Board and Vijay Shekhar Sharma steps down as Part-Time non-executive Chairman and Board member; PPBL’s future business to be led by a reconstituted Board, the company said in an exchange filing on February 26. However, Macquarie took a different stance and gave an “Underperform” rating with a target price of Rs 275 per equity share.

Next up…Platinum Industries set their IPO price band at Rs 162 to 171 per equity share to raise Rs 235.32 by offering 1.38 crore shares. The company will open the bid for subscription to retail investors on February 27 and close on February 29. A retail investor will have to bid for a minimum of 87 shares aggregating to Rs 14,877. Platinum’s shares will be listed on both NSE and BSE. The company offered 4.1 million shares to raise Rs 70.59 crore from anchor investors. The company will be using the raised net proceeds to invest in a subsidiary for financing the capital expenditure requirements, funding working capital expenditure requirements, and other general corporate purposes.

Additionally…JSW Neo Energy Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of JSW Energy Limited, on Tuesday announced that it has received Letter of Award (LoA) for ISTS-connected solar capacity of 700 MW from SJVN Limited. The company received the order against tariff based competitive bid invited for setting up of 1,500 MW ISTS-connected solar power projects. Following the award of 700 MW capacity from SJVN Ltd, the company’s total locked-in capacity increased to 11.0 GW comprising 1.4 GW of solar capacity. The project is required to supply power of full contracted capacity within 24 months from the effective date of PPA. The company expects to have 9.8 GW of operational generation capacity by CY2024, up from current operational capacity of 7.2 GW.

Let’s talk market…Exicom Tele-Systems IPO will open for bidding to retail investors on February 27. The IPO will raise Rs 439 crore. The issue has both fresh issue as well as offer for sale. The issue will close for subscription on February 29. The price band for the IPO has been set at Rs 135 to 142 per equity share. The company’s shares were seeing a premium of nearly 120% in the grey market. It is an unofficial market where shares of the company are traded illegally before listing. The company offers 2.32 crore shares through fresh issue and 0.7 crore shares through offer for sale. The shares of the company will be listed on both the bourses – NSE and BSE.

In other news…Air India is set to expand its ultra-long-haul flight services, primarily targeting US cities, as it enhances its aircraft fleet with additional A350s and B777s, sources reveal. The Tata Group-owned airline, amidst operational consolidation and the proposed merger of Vistara, aims to introduce direct flights from Indian cities to Seattle, Los Angeles, and Dallas. Currently, Air India is the exclusive Indian carrier offering services to the US, with flights to Washington, New York, Newark, San Francisco, and Chicago. Plans indicate that the airline is eyeing the winter schedule of 2024-25 for the commencement of flights to Seattle, Los Angeles, and Dallas, with A350s likely serving Seattle and B777s for Los Angeles and Dallas routes.

Moreover…Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL) on Tuesday announced that it has entered into Shareholders’ Agreement (SHA) with 3EV Industries Private Limited to acquire 30.97 per cent shareholding in the company. “We wish to inform that subsequent to execution of Share Subscription Agreement (SSA), Mahanagar Gas Limited has entered into Shareholders’ Agreement (SHA) with 3EV Industries Private Limited (3ev), Founders, Promoters and other Shareholders of 3ev, to acquire 30.97% shareholding in 3ev,” it said in a regulatory filing. It further added that the agreement has been entered for acquiring 30.97 per cent shareholding and voting rights in 3EV through equity instruments. Mahanagar Gas also informed of the issue of 18,343 equity instruments, for a total consideration of Rs 96 crore.

Lastly…Let’s take a look how the stocks performed today. The benchmark equity indices ended Tuesday’s trading session in the positive territory. The NSE Nifty 50 gained 76.30 points or 0.34% to settle at 21,198.35, while the BSE Sensex jumped 305.08 points or 0.42% to 73,095.22. The broader indices ended in positive territory, with gain led by Large-cap and small-cap stocks. Bank Nifty index ended marginally higher by 11.25 points or 0.02% to settle at 46,588.05. Realty and Auto stocks outperformed among the other sectoral indices while Media and PSU Banks stocks shed. TCS, Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank, and Power Grid are the top gainers on NSE Nifty 50 whereas top losers include Bajaj Finance, Here MotoCorp, Divi’s Lab, UPL, and State Bank Of India.