New Delhi: India’s second biggest healthcare provider by market value, Fortis Healthcare Ltd plans to raise Rs1,000 crore through a rights offer of shares by the end of July or early August.
The money raised will be used to buy and build hospitals, chief financial officer Yogesh Sarin said over the phone. As at March-end, Fortis had a network of 27 hospitals with a total capacity of 3,300 beds.
Tapping opportunities: A Fortis hospital in Noida. The healthcare firm had a network of 27 hospitals by the end of March. Ramesh Pathania / Mint
Fortis shares have gained 46% this year on speculation the company may buy a stake in Wockhardt Hospitals Ltd. The firm is continuously evaluating acquisition opportunities, Fortis informed the Bombay Stock Exchange, or BSE, on 5 June, denying a newspaper report that it had agreed on a purchase.
Wockhardt Ltd, the parent firm of Wockhardt Hospitals, is selling businesses to repay debt. Habil Khorakiwala, chairman of Wockhardt, said on Monday that Fortis is interested in buying a stake in Wockhardt Hospitals.
Fortis chief executive officer Bhavdeep Singh declined to comment on the matter. “We are certainly in a position to take advantage of a good opportunity as and when it presents itself,” he said.
Fortis and its units posted a profit of Rs4.8 crore in the quarter ended 31 March, compared with a loss of Rs9.9 crore a year earlier, Fortis said in a statement to BSE.
Fortis shares fell 4.6% to close at Rs95.50 on BSE on Tuesday.
PTI contributed to this story.
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