Fortis pares gains, ends flat

Profit taking in the market led Fortis Healthcare pare its gains. The stock ended flat at Rs 100. The counter clocked a volume fo 698,162 shares today on the BSE.

Meanwhile, Wockhardt and Apollo Hospitals also ended flat at Rs 129 and Rs 493, respectively.
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(Updated at 1052 hrs)

Fortis Healthcare surged 5% to a high of Rs 105 in early trades on reports of it being a front runner for buying Wockhardt Hospitals.

The stock opened at Rs 103, and then touched a high of Rs 105. It is currently trading at Rs 103, up 2.4% from its previous close. The counter has seen trades of around 137,900 shares so far on the BSE.

Fortis Healthcare, which is owned by former Ranbaxy promoters Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh, has emerged as the lead bidder to acquire a part of Wockhardt Hospitals after Apollo Hospitals opted out.

Sources close to the developments said the deal with Fortis, either for buying two-three hospitals or picking up a minority stake of about 25 per cent, may happen within three-four weeks.

Meanwhile, Wockhardt has rallied nearly 4% to Rs 135, and Apollo Hospitals has slipped over 1% to Rs 489.