Kodak India may well be the next multinational subsidiary to be delisted. Kodak UK and Eastman Kodak, which made an open offer for the Indian arm, now holds a 93.96 per cent stake in Kodak India.
The two companies had made an open offer at Rs 350 a share for buying out the outstanding stake of 25.24 per cent. They have now acquired an additional 19.20 per cent through the open offer, Kodak India has said in a notice issued to the Bombay Stock Exchange. J M Morgan Stanley was the advisor to the offer.
Under the guidelines issued by the Securities and Exchange Board of India, a company can be delisted if the public holding falls below 10 per cent.
Kodak is the latest multinational to make an open offer, while the others were Philips, Wartsila NSD, Otis Elevator and Carrier Aircon.
Kodak India occupies a prominent position in photographic products and consumables such as cameras and film rolls. The company has a presence in both the consumer and industrial imaging segment. It has also recently ventured into the fast growing industrial imaging segment.
Kodak India has reported a steady growth in earnings over the last five years. It has also recently launched an indigenisation drive and steadily increased production facilities to insulate itself from exchange rate fluctuations.