GQG-linked entities unload ₹9,395 crore ITC stake as shares slide 30% in 2026

GQG Partners-linked entities sold a 2.91% stake in ITC in one of the year’s largest block trades, as the cigarette-to-hotels group’s shares continued their sharp decline.

GQG Partners-linked entities have sold a 2.91% stake in ITC through a large block deal on the Bombay Stock Exchange, raising about ₹9,395.4 crore as one of the year’s biggest trades in the cigarette-to-hotels group. According to Business Standard, 36.5 crore shares changed hands at ₹257.35 each, while Alliance Witan PLC also offloaded a small holding in the same transaction.

The buyers included Fidelity Advisor Series VIII’s Overseas Fund, ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, SBI Mutual Fund, Nippon India Mutual Fund and Citigroup Global Markets Singapore, Business Standard reported. Moneycontrol said the deal also drew Citi, Fidelity, Mirae Asset, ICICI Prudential AMC and Morgan Stanley among 14 buyers, while Rediff reported that Fidelity International was the largest single purchaser with a 1.07% stake.

The sale comes against the backdrop of a broader reduction in GQG’s exposure to Indian equities. Scanx said GQG Partners and persons acting in concert trimmed their combined holding in ITC from 3.48% to 3.17% through multiple market transactions between May 2025 and October 2026, prompting disclosure under India’s takeover rules. Business Standard also noted that, as of the quarter ended June 30, Goldman Sachs Trust II’s GQG-backed international opportunities fund held 2.06% of ITC, while GQG Partners Emerging Markets Equity Fund held 1.06%, down from 2.11% a year earlier.

ITC shares fell 4.03% on Thursday to close at ₹255, extending a difficult year for the stock. Business Standard said the share price is down 29.92% so far in 2026, compared with a 14.97% decline in the Nifty 50 index over the same period.