Prataap Snacks on Thursday rejected media reports that ITC is planning to buy a 47% stake in the company. The Yellow Diamond parent firm issued a clarification in which it said that it is not in any negotiations with the FMCG giant for the stake sale.
“The company is not in negotiations as reported in the above-referred news article,” said the company in its BSE filing, while mentioning an article reporting a stock surge after reports of ITC stake sale talks.
Earlier in the day, the company’s shares skyrocketed more than 10% after the Economic Times reported that ITC is planning to purchase a 47% stake held by Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital) in listed Prataap Snacks.
Responding to a query by the stock exchange seeking an explanation on movement in the trading, Prataap Snacks wrote, “ We are not aware of any information that has not been announced to the Exchanges, which requires disclosures under Regulation 30 of the SEBI (LODR) Regulations, 2015.”
Prataap Snacks shares closed 4.46% higher at ₹1,226.80 per share on BSE on Thursday.
In January, Reuters reported that Indian snacks maker Haldiram was negotiating a deal with Prataap Snacks to acquire a majority stake in the company.
According to the report, the negotiations were at an early stage and a valuation had not been discussed. With the deal, Haldiram was planning to acquire at least a 51% stake in Prataap Snacks, the report stated. However, there has been no official confirmation or statement on the matter till now.
About Prataap Snacks
Prataap Snacks is the company behind the popular brand Yellow Diamond. It is famous for its chips, and a direct competitor to acclaimed brands like Lays and Kurkure.
The company made its stock market debut in 2017 and had annual revenues of around $200 million last year. It says it sells over 12 million packets of its salty snacks daily. Its cost-effective products bring it into direct competition with leading market players.
Prataap Snacks has 14 manufacturing plants across nine Indian states. Though smaller unorganised companies are still the frontrunners in the race for top-selling fried snacks in India, branded products have managed to gain a large chunk of profit in the country by providing healthy alternatives to Indian consumers.