Promoter stake in listed firms at 16-year low

For the first time since 2001, promoter stake in BSE 500 decisively below 50%

Promoter shareholdings in listed companies has dropped to the lowest in almost 16 years. This is on the back of the emergence of professionally-managed companies with typically no identifiable promoters.

Also, the regulatory diktat on companies to have a minimum 25 per cent public float has contributed to the gradual decline in promoter shareholdings. Some of the recent reduction could be due to some promoters diluting their stakes to cash on rising valuations, said experts. The average promoter shareholdings in BSE 500 companies stood at 49.1 per cent for the June 2017 quarter (Q1) — the lowest since December 2001. Promoter