The Egyptian Exchange (EGX) announced on Thursday that 73.46 million shares from the major Egyptian state-owned tobacco producer Eastern Company were acquired by investors for EGP 2.05 billion ($66.55 million in the official exchange rate market).
This purchase of shares represents 3.3 percent of the company’s total capital, with Eastern Company holding a total of 2.23 billion shares.
The stock concluded at EGP 26.76 at the previous day’s close.
The acquisition was conducted in a block-trading transaction, typically carried out by a single investor or a group of investors on the market.
Further specifics regarding the deal will be revealed in subsequent disclosures.
Eastern Company is a very lucrative company on foreign investors’ radar. It is listed among 35 companies slated for partial or complete privatization by the government.
In November, Emirati company Global Holding acquired a 30 percent stake in Eastern Company for EGP 16.4 billion ($530.86 million).
Following this transaction, the remaining shareholders in the company are the state-owned Holding Company for Chemical Industries (20.9 percent), Allan Gray Equity Fund (7.2 percent), the shareholders union of the Eastern Tobacco Company (6 percent), and free float (36 percent).
