Bharti Airtel Jumps 6%, Hits 52-Week High

 Sharemasterindia.com: Bharti Airtel shares jumped as much as 6 per cent to hit 52-week high of Rs 452.45 on Tuesday after the company said that it has entered into exclusive agreement with France's Orange to explore the sale of its four African subsidiaries.
 
In a release to the exchanges, India's largest telecom operator said, "Orange and Airtel have entered into an exclusive agreement to explore the possible acquisition by Orange of Airtel's subsidiaries in Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone."

However, the company said that there is no certainty of any binding agreement as a result of these discussions.

Analysts say the above four African arms contribute about 16 per cent of Bharti's Africa revenue and have around 12 per cent of Africa subscribers.

The Africa operations of Bharti have been a drag on its overall performance. Bharti Airtel has been losing money on its African operations. So if there is any deal on the African assets, it will be positive for Bharti Airtel shares, analysts say.

As of 12.35 p.m. shares of Bharti Airtel traded 5.23 per cent higher at Rs 451.90 apiece, outperforming the broader Nifty, which was flat at 8,602.35.