The Nambiars have sold 6.3-per-cent stake in flagship group company BPL for about Rs 25-30 crore. The promoters held 72.6 per cent stake at the end of December 2006, and this now stands at 65.26 per cent. The equity stake was diluted by market sales by two holding entities, which added to about 28.4 lakh shares. Given the prevailing market price, it would have fetched anywhere between Rs 25-30 crore.
The promoters had raised their holding through a preferential allotment just last June. The allotment was in lieu of conversion of a loan advanced by the promoters to comply with the corporate debt restructuring plan.
Until about five years ago, BPL was the market leader in the colour television (CTV) market. However, marred by heavy debt, the company over the years sold or hived off different businesses, including its CTV business. The latter was spun into a separate 50:50 joint venture with Japanese electronics company, Sanyo.
For the quarter ending December 31, 2006, BPL Ltd had reported net sales of Rs 24.97 crore on a net loss of Rs 8.78 crore.
