Renuka Hotels sells 1.35% Aitken Spence stake for Rs. 825 m

Renuka Hotels Ltd. yesterday sold 1.35% stake in Aitken Spence PLC for Rs. 825 million.

The stake amounting to 5.48 million shares was done at Rs. 150 each. Overall Aitken Spence saw 6.36 million of its shares change hands via 343 trades for Rs. 950 million. It closed up Rs. 18.25 or 14% to Rs. 148.75. Spence made the biggest contribution (33 points) to the upward movement of the All Share Price Index which shot up by 206 points or 2.3%. The deal also accounted for the highest turnover.

Renuka Hotels was the seventh largest shareholder of Spence, controlled by business tycoon Harry Jayawardena. Analysts said the exit was at a good profit and the buyer was a foreign institutional investor. 

Diversified blue chip Aitken Spence with operations across 8 countries, reported a strong performance during the 1Q of FY23. It recorded a significant increase in its profit before tax (PBT) of Rs. 7.2 billion compared to a loss of Rs. 467 million a year ago. This is the highest 1Q performance in the Group’s history despite the multiple obstacles stemming from the current economic crisis.