RCom shares reverse early gains on profit-booking

Reversing early gains notched up on the back of merger talks with Sistema, shares of Reliance Communications on Tuesday ended lower on profit-booking.

The stock ended at Rs 58.70, down 0.25%, on the BSE. In intra-day trade, shares of the company gained 2.97% to Rs 60.60.

On the NSE, the scrip lost 0.33% to settle at Rs 58.65.

In terms of volume, 18.07 lakh shares of the company changed hands at the BSE and over 95 lakh shares were traded at the NSE during the day.

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communications yesterday said it is in talks to buy Russian firm Sistema's Indian telecom arm to consolidate its position as the nation's fourth-largest private firm in the sector.

RCom will offer shares in the company to Sistema Shyam TeleServices in return for acquiring spectrum and customers in nine telecom circles or service zones.

"Reliance Communications and AFK Sistema have entered into exclusive discussions on a potential merger between the Indian telecom business of Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd (SSTL) and RCOM through a stock swap," RCom had said in a statement.

According to industry sources involved in the deal, SSTL is pushing to have about 10% stake in the resultant entity while RCom wants to settle it at around 7-8%. 

SSTL operates in nine telecom circles - Delhi, Kolkata, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh (West), Kerala and West Bengal.