The Grand Strategy of Ajay Piramal

Even if you put zero value on Ajay Piramal, as the stock market is doing right now, you'd have to agree that he's beaten the hell out of that insanely crazy market. Since 1988, when he took charge over what is now called Piramal Healthcare, and may soon be called by another name — Ajay…

Indian Overseas Bank Tries its Hand in The Alchemy of Finance

I was amused today while reading a story in the Business Standard titled, "Indian Overseas Bank cashes in on Realty."The paper reports that the Bank plans to "sell" some of its real estate to a "special purpose vehicle (SPV)."The sale, at current market price, will produce a "profit" for the bank because the real estate…

What Should Infy Do to Restore its Honor?

Take a look at the chart below. It shows something very very interesting. This is the stock price chart (adjusted for splits, bonus issues etc) of Infosys, one of India's most admired companies.The fellow who bought the stock in March 2000 (the peak of the tech bubble) and held on to the shares in Infosys…

Quiz: If IFC buys into IFCI, then what?

The stock price of IFCI (IFCI@IN) shot up by 13% today, presumably on rumors that International Finance Corporation (IFC) may buy a strategic stake in IFCI. See, for example, the following:http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php?id=14570297http://www.reuters.com/article/bankingfinancial-SP/idUSBOM23903720071203Suppose that the rumor was true. I have no clue, but let's just suppose that it was true.That is, suppose that IFC bought a strategic…

Essar Shipping’s Delisting Sinks, Drowns Prisoned Stockholders

Essar Shipping's stock sank yesterday on news of the failure of the tender offer to take the company private under SEBI's Delisting Regulations. In a cryptic-sounding message, the company informed the following to the Mumbai stock exchange: "Essar Shipping & Logistics Ltd has informed the Company pursuant to the approval of the shareholders for delisting…

Adventures of a Risk Arbitrageur- The Case of Matrix Laboratories

From: Sanjay BakshiSent: Sun 22/10/2006 20:22To: BFBVSubject: Adventures of a Risk ArbitrageurDear Students,Some time ago, I had told you about a deal on which I was working. This was the deal involving the acquisition of Matrix Laboratories by Mylan. I had, at that time said, that there are multiple ways of looking for opportunities in…

The Case of Neyveli Lignite

The following is the account of a fictional meeting which took place between Dr. Manmohan Singh, India’s Prime Minister (PM) and M. Karunanidhi, Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister (CM). Tamil Nadu is a state governed by DMK, a political party with socialist leanings and a partner in the coalition of parties supporting the central government led…

The BOC Special Situation

For details see my company's blog post.

Creating Free Warrants: The Case of JSW Steel

On January 20, 2006, JSW Steel gave the following notice to the exchanges:JSW Steel Limited has informed the Exchange that the Board at its meeting held on Jaunary 20,2006 has pursuant to section 81(1) of the Companies Act, 1956 has approved the issue of Equity Shares with Warrants on Rights basis to the existing shareholders…

When the promoter goes to jail, the projections go out of the window

In June 2005, Provogue came out with an IPO priced at Rs 150 per share. The IPO was subscribed 67 times (social proof, deprival super-reaction) the number of shares offered. The stock opened for trading at Rs 250 and closed at Rs 205 on 2 August.At Rs 205, the company's market cap comes to Rs…