LIC sells 2% stake in NMDC, garners over ₹700 crore
2 min read . Updated: 15 Mar 2023, 07:22 PM IST
Premium- The sale of 2 per cent stake or a little over 5.88 crore shares in open market has fetched more than ₹700 crore to LIC
State-owned Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) has sold 2 per cent of its equity stake in NMDC, taking its total shareholding in the public sector unit to 11.69 per cent as of 14 March, according to a regulatory filing on Wednesday.
The insurance giant said its holding in the public sector unit has decreased from 13.69 per cent to 11.69 per cent during the period between 29 December last year and 14 March this year, at an average price of ₹119.37 per share.
"Corporation's shareholding in NMDC Ltd has diluted from 40,14,72,157 to 34,25,97,574 equity shares decreasing its shareholding from 13.699 per cent to 11.690 per cent of the paid-up capital of the said company," the state-owned insurer said in a statement.
The sale of 2 per cent stake or a little over 5.88 crore shares in open market has fetched more than ₹700 crore to LIC.
Last month, LIC reported a 27-fold surge in quarterly profit as it recognised a large gain due to changes in its accounting policy.
LIC's profit surged to ₹6,334 crore, as premium income improved and the accounting policy change led to the transfer of ₹5,670 crore into a shareholders' fund.
Net premium income rose 14.5 per cent to ₹1.12 lakh crore in the quarter. The insurer, which is largely reliant on an army of agents, said policies sold in the nine months ended 31 December rose nearly 2 per cent year-on-year to 129 lakh.
Its solvency ratio, the measure of an insurer's ability to meet its long-term debt obligations, rose to 1.85 from 1.77 a year earlier.
The company's gross value of new business (VNB), which measures expected profit from new premiums and is a key gauge for growth, stood at ₹7,187 crore, while VNB margins came in at 19.1 per cent.