Western Carriers IPO subscribed 9.43 times

The initial share sale of logistics company Western Carriers (India) Ltd got subscribed 9.43 times on the third day of public offer on Tuesday.

The Rs 493-crore initial public offer received bids for 19,67,33,274 shares against 2,08,68,467 shares on offer, according to data available with the NSE.

The Retail Individual Investors (RIIs) part received 13.26 times subscription while the quota for non-institutional investors garnered 12.74 times bidding. The Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) category got subscribed 9 per cent.

Western Carriers (India) on Thursday said it has mobilised Rs 148 crore from anchor investors. The Kolkata-based company's initial public offering (IPO) was available for subscription in the price range of Rs 163-172 per share.

The IPO comprises a fresh issue of equity shares, aggregating up to Rs 400 crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of up to 54 lakh equity shares worth Rs 93 crore, at the upper end of the price band by promoter Rajendra Sethia.

Proceeds from the fresh issue to the tune of Rs 163.5 crore will be used for debt payment, Rs 152 crore for funding capital expenditure requirements towards the purchase of commercial vehicles, shipping containers, and reach stackers, and the remaining funds towards general corporate purposes.

Western Carriers is India's leading private, multi-modal, rail-focused, asset-light logistics company, with a customer base of 1,647 across varied sectors like metals and mining, FMCG, pharmaceutical, building materials, chemicals, oil and gas, and utilities as of March 2024.

Some of its key customers are Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries, Vedanta, BALCO, HUL, Coca-Cola India, Tata Consumer Products, Wagh Bakri, Cipla, Haldia Petrochemicals and Gujarat Heavy Chemicals, among others.

JM Financial and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company are the book-running lead managers to the offer. The equity shares are proposed to be listed on the BSE and NSE.