British multinational BAT Plc on Friday divested a 9 per cent stake in ITC Hotels to Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Societe Generale and Morgan Stanley, among others, for `3,856 crore through open market transactions. In a statement, British American Tobacco (BAT) said, “The proceeds of the stake sale will be used to progress to within the target 2-2.5x adjusted net debt/adjusted EBITDA leverage corridor (adjusted for Canada) by the end of 2026.” After the transaction, the net proceeds from the block trade “amount to INR 38.2 bn (approximately £315 million at current exchange rates)”. Also, BAT retains a 6.3 per cent holding in ITC Hotels, it added.
A total of 18.75 crore equity shares representing a 9 per cent stake were offloaded by BAT’s three affiliates, Tobacco Manufacturers India Ltd, Myddleton Investment Company and Rothmans International Enterprises, in ITC Hotels. Tobacco Manufacturers India sold more than 12.33 crore equity shares of ITC Hotels, Myddleton Investment Company offloaded 4.86 crore scrips of the firm, and Rothmans International Enterprises disposed of nearly 1.55 crore shares of ITC Hotels, as per the block deal data on the NSE. The shares were offloaded at an average price of `205.65 apiece, taking the combined transaction value to `3,855.94 crore.
Nippon India Mutual Fund, HCL Capital Pvt Ltd, BNP Paribas Arbitrage, and Vanguard Group were among the entities that purchased ITC Hotels’ shares, as per the data on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). Shares of ITC Hotels slipped 1 per cent to close at `205.65 apiece on the NSE. On Thursday, BAT announced that it will sell stake through its three arms in ITC Hotels. “Our direct shareholding in ITC Hotels was a result of the demerger process that was completed by ITC earlier this year.
“As previously stated, a direct stake in ITC Hotels is not a strategic holding for BAT, therefore, I am pleased that the proceeds from this transaction will further support continued progress towards our stated 2026 leverage corridor,” Tadeu Marroco, Chief Executive of BAT, said. Established in 1975, the business of ITC Hotels has grown to encompass over 140 hotels across 90+ destinations in the Indian subcontinent. After the demerger from ITC Ltd, ITC Hotels has been trading as a publicly listed entity since January 2025.
