Another director to offload 1 lakh Walton shares

To comply with the regulator's directive, another sponsor-director of Walton Hi-Tech Industries will sell 1 lakh shares as part of a move to increase its free float shares to 10% in the secondary market.

As per disclosure at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) on Wednesday, SM Mahbubul Alam, who holds 5.40 crore shares of the company, wants to offload the shares at the prevailing market price within the next 30 working days.

The shares closed at Tk1,047.7 each on Wednesday.

Currently, Walton's free float shares on the DSE are 0.99% of its total shares.

Free-float refers to the shares of a company that are available to the public for trading in the secondary market.

Earlier, the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) gave the company's sponsors and directors three years to ensure at least 10% free-float shares.

In September last year, the BSEC asked Walton Hi-Tech Industries, Berger Paints Bangladesh Ltd, and the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh to ensure a minimum of 10% free-float shares within a year through the offloading of sponsor-held shares.

In August this year, SM Ashraful Alam, the sponsor-director of Walton, sold 1 lakh shares in the secondary market.

In 2020, Walton – the country's electronics and technology giant – raised Tk100 crore by issuing only 0.97% shares.

Owing to the rapid appreciation of the dollar against the taka, Walton Hi-Tech Industries has incurred a loss for the first time in its history.

In the July-September quarter of the current fiscal year, it incurred a loss of Tk46 crore compared to Tk280.98 crore profit in the same period a year ago.

It had paid a 250% cash dividend to its general shareholders and a 150% cash dividend to its sponsor shareholders for fiscal 2021-22.

The company logged a profit of Tk1,216.61 crore, which is 25.78% lower than the previous fiscal year.