Bharti Airtel to sell 5% stake to Qatar Foundation for US$ 1.26 b

Reuters: Bharti Airtel Ltd. said it will sell a 5% stake in the company to Qatar Foundation Endowment for US$ 1.26 billion to strengthen its capital structure and fund future growth plans. The announcement sent its shares up nearly 5%.

Bharti, the world’s fourth-biggest mobile phone company by customers, will issue 199.9 million new shares to Qatar Foundation Endowment at 340 Rupees a piece, or a 7.3% premium to the stock’s last close, it said on Friday.

Qatar Foundation Endowment is the investment vehicle for Qatar Foundation, a non-profit organisation wholly-owned by the Gulf state’s Royal family.

Bharti shares rose as much as 4.7% after the news before paring some gains.

Bharti, controlled by billionaire Sunil Mittal and also nearly a third owned by Southeast Asia’s top phone carrier SingTel had US$ 11.7 billion of net debt, or about 2.5 times its operating profit, as of end-March.