NEW DELHI: Shares of
Vodafone Idea
continued to surge on Monday amid reports of tech giant Google eyeing stake in the telecom company. The stock gained as much as 10.55 per cent to Rs 11.63 on the BSE index.
In last 10 trading sessions, the stock price of the telecom operator has zoomed around 108 per cent (Rs 5.61 on May 26).
It has been reported that Google is in "initial talks" to buy a stake of about 5 per cent in cash-strapped Vodafone Idea, India’s third-largest telecom operator. Vodafone Idea was formed in August 2018 after the merger of Vodafone India and Idea Cellular.
The telecom company has been posting losses since the merger. Vodafone Idea, where British telecom giant Vodafone holds 45 per cent stake and Aditya Birla Group is the other promoter, is staring at nearly Rs 58,000 crore in past statutory dues.
These dues arose after the Supreme Court, in October last year, upheld the government's position on including revenue from non-core businesses in calculating the annual AGR (adjusted gross revenue) of telecom companies, a share of which is paid as licence and spectrum fee to the exchequer.
Both Vodafone Group and Idea parent Aditya Birla Group declined to comment on the deal so far.
(With agency inputs)
Ready to Master Stock Valuation? ET’s Workshop is just around the corner!
Start a Conversation
Post comment