NEW DELHI, April 9 -- Bharti Airtel Ltd's shares have fallen nearly 15% from their highs in early February, and now trade at '521 apiece. During the same time, the Nifty 100 index has risen marginally.
Analysts said while the delay in the muchhoped- for tariff hikes remains a problem, institutional investors are also unhappy with some of Airtel's recent deals in the private capital markets.
In February, the company said it will buy the 20% it does not already own in its direct-tohome (DTH) business in a cash-and-stock deal with a private equity (PE) firm. About two months before that, Airtel had decided to increase its stake in Indus Towers Ltd. "Institutional investors are getting wary of the company's capital allocation priorities. They...