12 March 2024 – Tuesday morning will see a spotlight on ITC shares due to a report indicating that British American Tobacco (BAT), the firm that makes Lucky Strike cigarettes, and a shareholder were planning to start selling off a portion of their investment in the Kolkata-based business as soon as this week. Business Today was unable to confirm the claim independently. One of the biggest and most varied companies in India, ITC operates in industries including paper, FMCG, hotels, and cigarettes.
In February, the London-listed BAT said that it was “actively working” to sell its about 29% ownership in the cigarette manufacturer ITC, which operates in various markets, including consumer packaged products and hotels.
The company that makes Lucky Strike and Dunhill cigarettes would be able to pay off its debt and go closer to the leverage range, where it could start buying back shares using the proceeds from the stake sale. Recently, businesses like Whirlpool and Hyundai said that their investments in Indian enterprises will be monetized. BAT said in its preliminary quarterly results for the
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BAT said in the December quarter that it was still looking for ways to improve the flexibility of its balance sheet. Part of this effort included routinely reviewing its ownership of ITC. “We recognise that we have a significant shareholding, which offers us the opportunity to release and reallocate some capital,” said BAT.
