IPO boom: Promoters of VRL Logistics, IndiGo, Alkem, Dr Lal hit jackpot in 2015

Year 2015 was tough for both the Sensex and Nifty constituents, as the steep fall in majority of the blue-chip counters led to a sharp wealth erosion for several investors. Not only the overall investor fraternity, promoters of these frontline companies too met with similar fate, witnessing a marked drop in their total value of holdings during the period, mainly on account of global economic uncertainty, plunging commodity prices and disappointing corporate earnings that triggered a massive wave of correction in these blue chips. [caption id=“attachment_2581970” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] But all was not lost. Investors reposed their faith in the primary market segment, leading to substantial appreciation in several IPO-related stocks post their listing. Buoyed by substantial upsurge in majority of these stocks, promoters of most of the IPO-bound companies saw their total wealth surge at a rapid pace as investors flocked to these counters on hopes of strong fundamentals and better earnings visibility going ahead. While 21 stocks were listed till January, promoters of 15 companies witnessed jump in the value of their holdings even as six slipped below their issue price as challenging market conditions and in select cases higher valuations prompted investors to trim their holdings.  Click here for full table Most of the stocks that listed on the bourses in 2015 outperformed the BSE IPO index, which gained 19 percent even as the benchmark Sensex fell 5 percent and the Nifty 4 percent during the period. In percentage terms, VRL Logistics was the top performer as the stock vaulted 102 percent boosting promoters wealth by Rs 1,329 crore. Since listing on the bourses, VRL shares surged to Rs 414 as on 10 January from the issue price of Rs 205 while the m-cap stood at a whopping Rs 3,780 crore. In fact, the IPO had received an overwhelming investors response as the issue got a massive 74 times subscription worth nearly Rs 25,000 crore. Market experts had then said investors were lured by the company’s strong growth potential. Similarly in value terms, promoters of InterGlobe Aviation and operators of IndiGo, India’s largest airline company, were the biggest gainers as the total wealth zoomed by a robust Rs 14,752 crore. Since its listing in early November, the stock has outperformed the markets, flaring up by 62 percent over its issue price of Rs 765. Among the other big wealth creating stocks for the owners, Alkem Laboratories came out flying colours as promoters wealth spurted by Rs 3,348 crore aided by a 40 percent surge in stock price in just around two weeks time since its listing on 23 December. The IPO of Alkem Lab generated demand worth about Rs 59,000 crore, as it received bids for 40.2 crore shares against the total issue size of just more than 9 crore shares. Similarly, Dr Lal Pathlabs, too, emerged as a standout performer, with the promoter wealth soaring by Rs 1,951 crore in nearly two weeks time since its listing on the same day with Alkem Lab. The IPO of Dr Lal Pathlabs had generated demand worth Rs 21,000 crore, as it received bids for 27.05 crore shares as against the total issue size of 81.20 lakh shares. Other stocks that withstood the subdued market sentiment were S H Kelkar & Company, Shree Pushkar Chemicals & Fertilizers, Sygene International and Manpasand Beverages etc among others. The IPO market’s strong performance continued in the first week of 2016 as well, as Narayana Hrudayalaya, which listed on 6 January, appreciated further by 30 percent more, resulting in the promoters’ wealth rising by nearly Rs 1,000 crore. However, select IPO scrips failed to enthuse investors, which particularly stayed away from infrastructure and media & entertainment companies. Companies such as Adlabs Entertainment fell nearly 26 percent and UFO Movies dropped 19 percent while shares of MEP Infrastructure Developers eased 28 percent and Pennar Engineered Building Systems was down 10 percent during the period. Several stock market analysts believe demand for quality IPO papers will continue to remain this year as well, although pricing of the issue remains key. Also, performance of the secondary market will be keenly watched as any adverse sentiment in overseas markets could hurt the domestic market prospects badly, and in turn force companies to delay their public issues, said analysts. Data inputs from Kishor Kadam