IRCTC shares decline as offer for sale begins

The shares of Indian Railway Catering And Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) slumped sharply on Thursday morning after its shares were put up for offer for sale (OFS).

At 12.43 pm, the shares of IRCTC traded at Rs 693.10, down 5.69 per cent. Its intraday low was Rs 692.

Ministry of Railways on Wednesday evening informed stock exchanges through a regulatory filing that through the OFS, the promoter, the government of India, proposes to sell up to 2,00,00,000 equity shares of the company, representing a 2.5 percent stake starting today for non-retail investors, with an option to additionally sell 2,00,00,000 shares representing another 2.5 percent stake.

While both retail as well as non-retail investors will be able to subscribe on Friday who chooses to carry forward their unallotted bids.

The floor price for the offer is set at Rs 680 per share, the regulatory filing said.

The brokers for the offer for sale on behalf of the seller are Axis Capital, Citigroup Global Markets, Goldman Sachs, and JM Financial.

"In the event, the aggregate number of orders received from non-Retail Investors in the Offer at or above the Floor Price on T day is not sufficient, the Seller reserves the right to cancel the Offer, post bidding, in full (for both non-Retail Investors and Retail," it said explaining the potential conditions for cancellation of the offer for sale.

The government of India held a 67.40 percent stake as of September 2022 in IRCTC, and the rest is held by the public, exchange data showed.

IRCTC is a Mini Ratna (Category-I) Central Public Sector Enterprise under the Ministry of Railways.

IRCTC was incorporated in September 1999 as an extended arm of the Indian Railways to upgrade, professionalize and manage the catering and hospitality services at stations, on trains, and in other locations. It's registered and Corporate Office is situated in New Delhi.

( With inputs from ANI )