Public holding in ACC down 12.85% in a year

Public holding in Associated Cement Companies (ACC) has dropped to 22.63 per cent on March 31, 2004, from 35.48 per cent a year ago, indicating that retail investors have cashed in the rally at the counter.

The stock has zoomed 83.79 per cent in the last 12 months to Rs 254.55 on March 31. The ACC scrip rose 1.27 per cent to close at Rs 267.25 on the Bombay Stock Exchange today.

Mutual funds and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) increased their holding in the company substantially in the last fiscal. Mutual funds have increased their holding to 10.55 per cent from 3.96 per cent.

Among financial institutions, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) now holds 16.74 per cent in company. It had picked up 1.63 crore shares owned by (late) Harshad Mehta through the custodian at Rs 170.

The foreign institutional investors' (FII) holding in the company has increased to 22.83 per cent as on March 31 from 18.82 per cent last year. The FII holding was at 23.86 per cent after the third quarter ended December 31, 2003.

Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Pte, a registered foreign institutional investor, has reduced its stake in the company to 1.32 per cent from 2.15 per cent as on March 2003. Small Cap World Fund Inc also reduced its holding in the company marginally to 4.66 per cent from 4.83 per cent during the same period.

Four new foreign funds invested in the company in the last 12 months. While HSBC Global Investment Funds "" Mauritius holds a 2.27 per cent stake in the company, Merrill Lynch Capital Markets Espana, another foreign fund has picked 1.44 per cent in the company.

Citigroup Global Market Mauritius (1.04 per cent) and JP Morgan Fleming Asset Management (1.79 per cent) are among the other new funds to invest in the company.