SoftBank likely offloads Zomato shares worth Rs. 1,040cr
On October 20, online food delivery titan Zomato saw its shares climb over 2.5%, hitting the day's high of Rs. 114.50 apiece on NSE. This uptick came on the heels of a block deal worth Rs. 1,040.50 crore in which nearly 9.30 crore shares, or 1.1% of the company's equity, were traded during the pre-open session. SVF Growth Fund, a SoftBank subsidiary, is said to be the probable seller of this block deal.
SoftBank has been on a selling spree in recent months
According to media reports, SoftBank was looking to sell 1.1% of its stake in Zomato, valued at around Rs. 1,000 crore. The most recent shareholding data indicates that SoftBank held a 2.2% stake in Zomato. In August, the Japanese investment bank sold Zomato shares worth Rs. 940 crore in a block deal. SoftBank has been actively exiting from its investments in India's new-tech sector. It recently offloaded a 2.5% stake in Policybazaar's parent company, PB Fintech, for Rs. 876 crore.
Zomato's current market capitalization
At the time of writing, the food tech giant's shares were trading at Rs. 112.60 each on the NSE, marking a 0.9% increase. The stock is hovering around its 52-week high of Rs. 115.10 per share, and the company's market capitalization at that moment was approximately Rs. 96,886.06 crore.
Increased stakes by FIIs and DIIs
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have increased their stakes in Zomato over the last quarter, leading to a consistent rally in the company's stock price. In the past six months, Zomato's stock has soared 107.57%, surpassing the Nifty 50 benchmark's gain of 12.56%. FIIs boosted their stake from 54.4% to 54.7%, while DIIs raised their stake from 9.9% to 13% in Q2 FY24.
Recent developments and partnerships
Recently, Zomato joined forces with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to provide and deliver preordered meals via IRCTC's e-catering portal. The partnership serves as a Proof of Concept (PoC) in the initial phase, encompassing five railway stations: New Delhi, Prayagraj, Kanpur, Lucknow, and Varanasi. This alliance is among several factors that have contributed to Zomato's robust performance in the stock market.
