Mumbai: The Life Insurance Corporation of India booked profit in a majority of blue chip companies like Tata Consultancy Services, Hindustan Unilever, State Bank of India and Asian Paints while it raised stake in Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Reliance Industries, Infosys and IndusInd Bank during the July-September quarter, the shareholding data disclosed by Sensex companies to the stock exchanges showed.
It was a crucial quarter for LIC as profit booking would help it strengthen its balance sheet ahead of the planned mega initial public offering in the fourth quarter and before filling its draft red herring prospectus (DHRP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
Most probably the DRHP will be filed in next few weeks so that it would get regulator Sebi's observation early next year before the IPO in the January-March quarter of FY2021-22.
Shareholding data analysed by Financial Chronicle show LIC booked profit in 15 of the Sensex companies as the market soared to record highs while it bought fresh shares to raise stake in 10 of the Sensex companies.
The companies where LIC's stake came down were SBI (from 8.62 per cent to 8.34 per cent),TCS (3.68 to 3.67), HUL (3.59 to 3.52), L&T (13.25 to 12.80), Tata Steel (6.67 to 6.33), HDFC Bank (3.24 to 2.68), HDFC (3.98 to 3.83), ITC (16.25 to 16.23), Titan (3.96 to 3.24), Nestle (2.11 to 2.05), Sun Pharma (7.37 to 7.34), Ultra Tech Cement (4.40 to 4.38), Bajaj Auto (8.33 to 7.08), ONGC (10.63 to 10.59), and Asian Paints (2.33 to 1.49).
The Sensex companies where LIC raised its stake during the quarter included Dr Reddy's Lab. (2.34 per cent to 4.50 per cent), Reliance Industries (5.82 to 5.98), Infosys (5.51 to 5.55), Kotak Mahindra Bank (4.38 to 4.96), IndsInd Bank (4.77 to 5.40), Bharti Airtel (3.63 to 3.84), Tech Mahindra (4.19 to 4.31), Maruti (5.55 to 5.73), and HCL Technologies (1.94 to 2.34).
In Power Grid and Bajaj Finance. LIC held less than one per cent stake while In Mahindra & Mahindra (8.47 per cent), ICICI Bank (7.59 per cent) and Bajaj Finserv (1.53 per cent) LIC's stake remained unchanged during the quarter compared to the previous quarter.
