Shares of Heidelbergcement India, the Indian cement arm of Germany’s HeidelbergCement Group, rallied 18% to hit a 52-week high amid report of a buyout talks with Adani Group. Billionaire Gautam Adani-led Adani Group is in discussions to acquire HeidelbergCement India and Zuari Cement from the German parent firm at a valuation of around ₹10,000 crore, as per media report.
Riding high on buyout rumors, shares of Heidelbergcement India surged as much as 17.95% to touch a new 52-week high of ₹257.85 on the BSE. Snapping two sessions losing streak, Heidelbergcement India shares opened higher at ₹238.70, up 9.2% against the Friday’s closing price of ₹218.60.
The share price of Heidelbergcement India has risen 40.5% against its 52-week low of ₹183.50 touched on October 26, 2023. In the last one year, the smallcap cement stock has risen 22%, while it added nearly 11% in a six month period. In the calendar year 2024, the counter has corrected nearly 1%, whereas it gained nearly 2% in a month.
Meanwhile, shares of Adani Group cement entities - Ambuja Cements and ACC - were reeling under selling pressure, falling in the range of 2-4%, in sync with the broader market. The equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty were down over 0.6% at the time of reporting.
In the first half of the current fiscal, the Adani Group cement companies announced a slew of acquisitions, including Penna Cement Industries Ltd (PCIL), My Home Group, and Sanghi Industries Ltd.
In August 2024, Ambuja Cements, a subsidiary of Adani Cement, acquired a 100% stake in Hyderabad-based PCIL, promoted by P Prathap Reddy and family, at an enterprise value of ₹10,422 crore.
Earlier in April this year, Ambuja Cements inked a pact to acquire My Home Group's 1.5 MTPA cement grinding unit in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu. As per the company, the estimated cost of the acquisition is ₹413.75 crore, which will be funded through internal accruals.
Adding to it, in August last year, Ambuja Cements acquired Gujarat-based Sanghi Industries at an enterprise value of ₹5,000 crore.
As per media report, Adani Group is looking for several acquisitions in the cement sector as part of its strategies to become the largest cement manufacturer in India. This includes Gujarat’s Saurashtra Cement, Vadraj Cement owned by ABG Shipyard, and Jaiprakash Associates’ cement business, as per The Economic Times report.
Currently, Adani Cement, including Ambuja and its subsidiaries ACC and Sanghi Industries, is the country’s second-largest cement producer after Aditya Birla Group’s UltraTech Cement, with the group’s cement capacity of 78.9 MTPA and 18 integrated cement manufacturing plants as well as 19 cement grinding units across the country.
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