Max Healthcare shares slide 4.4% after NSE refuses to waive off fine

Shares of Max Healthcare slipped 4.4 per cent at Rs 782 a piece in Thursday intraday deals. This came after the National Stock Exchange refused to waive off a fine of Rs 2,36,000 on the hospital chain.

On Wednesday, Max Healthcare informed investors that the waiver filed by the company has not been considered favourably by NSE. Last year in November, the Indian bourses imposed a fine on the company for deviating from the board composition requirements laid down under regulation 17(1) of the SEBI Regulations, 2015.

The fall in stock price also comes amidst a Rs 2500 crore investment plan by the company for developing hospitals in Lucknow where it earlier acquired the 550-bed Sahara Hospital for Rs 940 crore, aiming to become “largest private sector player” in Uttar Pradesh in its field.

The new investment will be part of the Delhi-based group’s plan to double capacity by adding 4,200 beds in the next four to five years for an investment of more than Rs 5,000 crore. The group has 4,000 beds now and in five years the count will be 8,200.

Sahara Hospital, which is spread over a 27-acre land in Gomti Nagar in the heart of Lucknow, has 285 operational beds. Max Healthcare acquired it on a slump sale basis from Sahara India Medical Institute Limited.

This acquisition marked the beginning of Max Healthcare’s plans to scale up its presence and investments in the region. The hospital has been renamed as Max Super Specialty Hospital.

At 11:48 AM, Max Healthcare was trading 3.40 per cent lower at Rs 790.20 a piece. A combined 81,133 stocks of the company changed hands on the BSE. The stock has gained 8.12 per cent in the last month, while it has rallied 36.66 per cent in the last six months. It is currently trading at a price to earnings multiple of 138.88.

According to its website, Max Healthcare manages 17 hospitals with over 3,500 beds and more than 4,800 clinicians spanning across the Delhi National Capital Region, Mohali, Bathinda, Dehradun, and Mumbai. Business Standard