Pantaloon Retail rallies 6 pc on merger proposal

Shares of Pantaloon Retail India today rose by about 6 per cent after Aditya Birla group firm Peter England Fashions & Retail's board approved merger of Pantaloon's format business and fixed the share swap ratio at 1:5.

After a positive opening, shares of the company further gained 5.53 per cent to Rs 151.50 on the BSE.

At the NSE, the scrip climbed 5.84 per cent to Rs 152. As per the share swap ratio, for every five shares of Pantaloon, the shareholders will get one Peter England share.

This mark a step closer towards Aditya Birla Group's proposed acquisition of majority stake in Kishore Biyani-led group's flagship Pantaloon format apparel retail business unit.

"The board of directors of Peter England Fashions and Retail Ltd (PEFRL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd approved the scheme of arrangement for the demerger of 'Pantaloons Format' business into PEFRL," Aditya Birla group had said in a statement yesterday.