Fortis Healthcare posts net loss for September, Decemeber quarters

(Reuters) - Fortis Healthcare Ltd, whose promoters have been facing multiple legal troubles, reported a net loss for the September and December quarters late on Wednesday, after it sought an extension to approve results for the two reporting periods.

Fortis posted a net loss of 236.1 million rupees ($3.62 million) for the quarter ending Sept. 30 compared with a profit of 382.4 million rupees a year ago, mainly on a one-time charge due to the closure of a hospital, it said in a stock exchange filing. http://bit.ly/2FCVJgh

For the December quarter, it reported a net loss of 191 million rupees, compared with a profit of 4.53 billion rupees on a one-off gain by an associate company in the year-ago period. http://bit.ly/2FHs8lO

The main shareholders of Fortis, Malvinder Mohan Singh and Shivinder Mohan Singh, stepped down from the board last month saying it was in the interests of the company because of multiple legal troubles they were facing.

On Wednesday, the promoters including the Singh brothers reduced their stake by 2.23 percent to 0.77 percent. http://bit.ly/2FFvjKN

They, along with affiliates, held a 34.43 percent stake in Fortis at the end of December, a company filing showed.

Fortis shares were up nearly 1 pct as of 0457 GMT.

($1 = 65.2000 rupees)

(Reporting by Krishna V Kurup in Bengaluru; Editing by Biju Dwarakanath)