Travel and tourism firm Cox and Kings on Monday said it would raise up to Rs. 610.39 crore through an initial public offering and plans spending about Rs. 150 crore of the amount on global acquisitions.
The company has filed a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with market regulator SEBI for offloading 18,496,640 equity shares (diluting 29.40 per cent of the promoters’ stake) at a price band of Rs. 316-330.
“We plan to utilise Rs. 150 crore of the amount raised from the IPO for acquisitions in India and abroad,” Cox and Kings Executive Director Ajay Peter Kerkar said here.
The offer will open for public subscription between November 18 and 20.
“Besides, another Rs. 130 crore would go for repayment of loans, Rs. 62.5 crore for our overseas subsidiaries and Rs. 60 crore for expansion of existing operations,” he added.
Asked about details regarding acquisition plans, Mr. Kerkar cited the regulatory reasons for being unable to disclose it.
He, however, said: “For acquisitions, we generally target specialist firms who are market leaders in niche segments because they are profitable and have sound management structure. They may be either Indian or foreign.”
In the last three years, Cox and Kings made three major acquisitions including that of UK-based ground handling firm ETN in 2006, which was followed by Australian company Tempo Travel in 2008 and U.S.-based travel firm East India this year.
