New Delhi, Mar 12: Jagatjit Industries is back in focus again. The scrip touched a two-year high of Rs 70.25 on the Mumbai Stock Exchange. On NSE, the scrip hit the upper-end of the circuit filter on Wedensday at Rs 70.40. Interestingly, at the end of tarding there were still pending orders at Rs 70.40. Volumes, too, have risen from 500-600 shares to over 2,000 shares.
The market is rife with the rumours of a foreign liqour manufacturer having hired a consultancy firm to evaluate Jagatjit for a possible acquisition. The existing promoter, L P Jaiswal, currently holds 37 per cent in the company. According to marketmen, the promoter had earlier received two or three offers for a sell-off which he turned down because of a disagreement over the acquisition price.
Jagatjit's liquor business is worth Rs 500 crore. As per marketmen, the deal would include the sale of Jagatjit Industries' brands as well as its manufacturing and bottling units.
Jagatjit has in its fold well-known whisky brands like Aristocrat, Black Velvet and Fotune Gold, all of which are in the popular price range.
Aristocrat is the largest selling whisky in the sub-Rs 100 segment. At the other end of its liquid portfolio, Jagatjit Industries offers family nutritional drinks like Maltova, Viva and Complan through its wholly owned subsidiary Milkfood Limited. However, there are those who claim that the rise in Jagatjit' scrip is because the company has recently a 15 per cent interim dividend. The record date for payment of dividend has been fixed for April 6. The company has an equity base of Rs 49.44 crore and as on March 31, 1997 it had reserves worth Rs 258 crore. The scrip is currently quoting at Rs 70 against its book value of Rs 62.18.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
