FIIs stake in BSE-500 firms at new high

MUMBAI, May 5 (Business Standard): Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have further tightened their grip on the Indian equity market, with their average holding in BSE-500 companies hitting a new high at the end of March 2014 quarter.
According to the shareholding pattern for the quarter ended March 2014 filed by 489 companies from the BSE-500 index, average FII stake in these companies shot up by 30 basis points (bps) to 19.9 per cent from 19.6 per cent as at end of December 2013 quarter.
They have upped their stake in BSE-500 index by nearly 100 bps from 19 per cent at the end of September 2013 quarter (18.59 per cent stake in the March 2013 quarter). These 500 companies account for nearly 93 per cent of the total market capitalisation on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
The overseas investors have pumped in Rs 854.44 billion ($13.87 billion) in the last eight months between September 2013 and April 2014. This has seen the benchmark indices surge over 20% during the period.
On the other hand, holdings of promoters and individual investors have dipped to multi- year lows, data suggests.
Promoters and government ownership has dropped to 51.4 per cent in March quarter against 52 per cent in December 2013. They held an average 52.65 per cent stake at the end of March 2013 quarter. This is mainly due to the dilution of government's stake in state-owned companies like Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Engineers India (EIL) and BHEL to meet divestment targets.