Bhatia Communications warrants conversion drives equity growth as board approves interim dividend for FY 2025-26

Bhatia Communications & Retail (India) Limited said its board approved converting 1.05 crore warrants into equity shares. The decision was taken at a board meeting on March 9, 2026. The company issued 1,05,00,000 equity shares of Re 1 each. The shares were allotted through a preferential allotment after conversion.

The issue price was Rs 23.75 per share, including a Rs 22.75 premium. The company said the warrant holders paid the balance amount before conversion. After this allotment, issued and paid-up share capital rose to Rs 14.06 crore. It now consisted of 14,06,52,000 equity shares of Re 1 each.

Separately, Bhatia Communications informed exchanges about a third interim dividend for FY 2025-2026. The board declared Re. 0.01/- (1%) per equity share of Rs. 1/- face value. The record date for eligibility was fixed as February 20, 2026. The record date decision was approved at a board meeting on February 13, 2026.

The equity shares were allotted to select non-promoter investors and promoter group members. Hema Sanjeev Bhatia and Garima Nikhil Bhatia converted 25 lakh warrants each. Forbes EMF converted 50 lakh warrants. Rahul Rajkumar Chawla and Pankajkumar Kishorkumar Ahuja converted 2.5 lakh warrants each. Post conversion, holdings ranged from 0.18% to 3.55%.

Warrant holders had paid 25% upfront when warrants were issued on September 11, 2024. That upfront amount was Rs 5.9375 per warrant. For conversion, investors paid the remaining 75%, or Rs 17.8125 per warrant. The company received Rs 18.70 crore for the conversion. It also confirmed no warrants remained pending.

The company said the new shares ranked pari-passu with existing equity shares. This meant the new shares carried the same rights and privileges. On March 10, 2026, the BSE price was Rs 21.70, down from Rs 21.94. The day’s range was Rs 21.60 to Rs 22.10, with a Rs 21.71 open.

Bhatia Communications had a market capitalisation of Rs 285 Cr at that price point. Over the prior 52 weeks, the stock moved between Rs 33.60 and Rs 19.50. The company’s filings linked the capital increase to the completed warrant conversions. The updates also covered the interim dividend and the record date used for shareholder eligibility.