The Hindu Business Line : ICRA fixes IPO price band at Rs 275-330

WEIGHING NEW RATING: Mr P.K. Choudhury (right), Vice-Chairman & Group CEO, ICRA Ltd, with Mr Naresh Takkar, MD, at a press conference to announce the company's IPO in Mumbai on Monday. - Paul Noronha

Mumbai March 12 ICRA Ltd, credit rating and consulting agency, will enter the capital market with a public issue of 25,81,100 equity shares of Rs 10 each to be decided by 100 per cent book building process through an offer for sale.

The company will not receive any proceeds from the offer. The price band for the issue has been fixed between Rs 275 and Rs 330 per equity share. The issue opens on March 20 and closes on March 23.

IFCI Ltd and the administrator of the specified undertaking of Unit Trust of India (UTI), currently holding 21.13 per cent and 7.95 per cent stake, respectively in the company, will offload their entire stake post-issue.

The shareholding of SBI will come down to 9.99 per cent from 11.5 per cent.

Moody's group is the largest promoter of ICRA and currently holds 29.1 per cent equity of the company.

Post-listing, its stake will come down to 28.51 per cent even after the preferential allotment of shares to it at the offer price. The issuealso provides an employee stock option accounting for 9.06 per cent of the equity post-offer. The issue constitutes 25.81 per cent of the fully diluted post-offer capital of the company.

Allotment details

Of the total issue, 50 per cent will be allotted to qualified institutional bidders, of which 5 per cent will be given to mutual funds. At least 15 per cent of the offer will be allocated to non-institutional bidders and 35 per cent to retail individual bidders on a proportionate basis.

The company recorded total revenues of Rs 51.25 crore for the nine months ended December 31, 2006 and profit after tax of Rs 13.58 crore for the same period.

It will look at expanding its global capacities and enter into joint ventures outside India in the future, said Mr Naresh Takkar, Managing Director, ICRA. The company currently provides rating and grading services, research-based information services and outsourcing services.

SBI Capital Markets Ltd and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Ltd are the book running lead managers to the issue.