Western Carriers collects Rs 148 cr from anchor investors ahead of IPO

Logistics company Western Carriers (India) on Thursday said it has mobilised Rs 148 crore from anchor investors a day before its initial share sale opening for public subscription.
 

Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance Company, Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance Company, Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund (MF), Kotak MF, Aditya Birla Sun Life MF, Nippon India MF, BNP Paribas, Societe Generale and Citigroup Global Markets Mauritius are among the anchor investors.
 

According to a circular uploaded on BSE's website, the company has allotted 8.597 mn equity shares to 15 funds at Rs 172 apiece, which is also the upper end of the price band. This aggregates the transaction size to Rs 148 crore.
 

Out of the total allocation of 8.597 mn equity shares to anchor investors, 3.993 mn equity shares were allocated to 4 domestic mutual funds, which have applied through a total of 6 schemes.
 

The Kolkata-based company's Rs 493 crore initial public offering (IPO) will be available for public subscription from September 13 to September 18 in the price range of Rs 163 to Rs 172 per share.
 

The IPO comprises a fresh issue of equity shares, aggregating up to Rs 400 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 5.4 mn equity shares worth Rs 93 crore, at the upper end of the price band by promoter Rajendra Sethia.
 

Proceeds from the fresh issue to the tune of Rs 163.5 crore will be used for debt payment, Rs 152 crore for funding capital expenditure requirements towards the purchase of commercial vehicles, shipping containers, and reach stackers, and the remaining funds towards general corporate purposes.
 

The company said that investors can bid for a minimum of 87 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
 

Western Carriers is India's leading private, multi-modal, rail-focused, asset-light logistics company, with a customer base of 1,647 across varied sectors like metals and mining, FMCG, pharmaceutical, building materials, chemicals, oil and gas, and utilities as of March 2024.
 

Some of its key customers are Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries, Vedanta, BALCO, HUL, Coca-Cola India, Tata Consumer Products, Wagh Bakri, Cipla, Haldia Petrochemicals and Gujarat Heavy Chemicals, among others.
 

As of fiscal 2024, the company's revenue from operations was Rs 1,685 crore, with a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 80 crore.
 

JM Financial and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company are the book-running lead managers to the issue. The equity shares are proposed to be listed on the BSE and NSE. 

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