Drone IPO gives wings to India’s defence industry

ideaForge Technology

11/07/2023 03:59

(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.  The opinions
expressed are his own.)
    By Pranav Kiran
       BENGALURU, July 11 (Reuters Breakingviews) - IdeaForge’s
shares have nearly doubled since their debut, giving the
government supplier a $586 mln valuation – or 151 times trailing
earnings. It’s a bet that New Delhi will upgrade its military
amid tensions with neighbours. India’s defence stocks look
primed for takeoff.

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    CONTEXT NEWS 
    Drone maker ideaForge Technology’s Mumbai shares closed down
10.2% to 1162.40 rupees on July 10 after rising 93% from their
initial public offering price on their first-day trading on July
7.
    The company issued 2.4 billion rupees ($29 million) worth of
primary shares while existing investors sold an additional 3.3
billion rupees worth of secondary shares.
    In the fiscal year to March 2023, ideaForge’s earnings were
320 million rupees, and 597 million rupees after excluding
share-based compensation.

 (Editing by Robyn Mak and Thomas Shum)
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