Shares of Birla Corporation doing well in the markets today

Shares of Birla Corporation, a mid-sized cement maker, hit their highest level in 7 months after the commodity maker said it was acquiring two units that will boost its capacity by a third.

Birla Corp said it had purchased two cement units in eastern India from Lafarge India Pvt Ltd. for an enterprise value of 5,000 crore rupees. Birla said the transaction will be funded by existing funds and incremental debt. The two units will add 5.15 million tons of fresh cement capacity to Birla Corp's existing 10 million tons per annum.

As a consequence, Birla Corp surged 39.50 rupees, or 8.7 percent, to 493 rupees on the National Stock Exchange, where 66,300 shares were traded in the first hour of trade compared with a 5-day average of 48,590 shares.

Birla Corp's market capitalisation has fallen 7 percent to 3,773 crore rupees in the past one year as the sector suffered from sluggish demand. The stock is trading at 1.32 times book value of 342 rupees.

(Image credits: Indiatimes)