Vanguard Group Buys CarTrade Shares Worth INR 129 Cr

Global investment management firm Vanguard Group bought 7.13 Lakh shares of auto-classifieds platform CarTrade via bulk deals yesterday. 

As per NSE data, Vanguard acquired the shares at INR 1,804 per apiece. The complete purchase was worth INR 128.77 Cr.

Of these 7.13 Lakh shares, Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund bought 3.3 Lakh shares and Vanguard Group Inc AC Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund acquired 3.83 lakh shares. 

This is the first instance of Vanguard acquiring a stake in the company. 

CarTrade On A Bull Run: This comes at a time when shares of CarTrade have been on an upward trend despite the correction in the broader Indian equities market.

The stock has surged about 19.05% on a year-to-date basis. During the same period, benchmark index Sensex has given a return of -2.04%. 

CarTrade ended the last six sessions in the green and the stock has jumped 17.89% this month. The shares ended yesterday’s trading session 6.4% higher at INR 1,812.65 on the BSE.

This bull run has been fuelled by the company’s strong financial performance. In Q3, the company reported a financial turnaround, netting a profit of INR 45.53 Cr against a loss of INR 23.55 Cr in the year-ago quarter. Sequentially, its net profit zoomed 48% from INR 30.72 Cr.

Its operating revenue grew 27% year-on-year and 14% quarter-on-quarter to INR 176.21 Cr during the quarter under review. 

Investors Cash In On Surge In Stock Price: The rise in the share price of CarTrade has provided an opportunity for institutional investors to book profits.

For instance, earlier this week, Temasek’s wholly owned subsidiary MacRitchie Investments sold 92,000 shares of CarTrade.

In September last year, Warburg Pincus exited the company by completely selling its 8.64% stake for INR 375.1 Cr.