FIIs ramp up stake in AV Birla companies

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have hiked their stake in A V Birla group companies Grasim Industries, Hindalco and Indian Rayon in the quarter ended December 2003.

While FIIs' stake in Hindalco has jumped to 17.91 per cent from 13.96 per cent in the December quarter, their stake in Indian Rayon has also increased to 9.58 per cent from 6.6 per cent in September 2003.

Their stake in Grasim has also gone up by close to 2.5 per cent in the December quarter to over 19 per cent.

Noticeably, the stake held by FIIs in Hindalco has been on the rise since April 2003. The shareholding stood at 11.65 per cent on April 2003.

The shareholding of banks and financial institutions and mutual funds in Hindalco has come down by almost 2 per cent in the last quarter to 12.3 per cent.

Mutual funds have also reduced their holding in the company by 2.2 per cent to 9.5 per cent. The 7.77 per cent stake held by the Life Insurance Corporation has declined to 6.9 per cent.

FIIs have pared their stake in Grasim in the quarter ended September 2003, to 16.86 from 18.41 per cent, but revived their holding to close to 19 per cent. Since April 2003, the FIIs shareholding has gone up by almost 5 per cent in the company from 14.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, in Indian Rayon, the FIIs stake leaped more than 5 per cent from 1.19 per cent in June 2003 to 6.6 per cent in September 2003.

While banks and FIs stake fell from 21.1 per cent to 18.2 per cent in the company as on September, public holding also declined by close to 2 per cent.