Top IHS shareholder to cut stake by two-thirds

(Reuters) - Business information provider IHS Inc (IHS.N) said its largest shareholder would reduce stake in the company by about two-thirds to 6-8 percent.

IHS said Conscientia Investment Ltd, which currently owns 22.4 percent of the company, will sell 8 million shares through a secondary offering.

The stake sale could be worth about $846.7 million, based on the stock's Monday closing price of $105.84. IHS, however, will not receive any proceeds from the offering.

Conscientia Investment Ltd is owned by the Thyssen-Bornemisza Group, in which IHS CEO Jerre Stead is a director.

IHS shares, which have risen 23 percent this year, fell 5.5 percent to $100 after the bell on Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.

The company, known for publications such as Jane's Defence Weekly and Global Insight, also reported second-quarter second results that topped Wall Street expectations.

IHS earned $44 million, or 66 cents per share, for the second quarter, up from $40 million, or 61 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company earned 97 cents per share.

Revenue for the quarter ended May 31 rose 20 percent to $387 million. Subscription revenue rose 15 percent to $287.2 million.

Analysts had expected second-quarter earnings of 94 cents per share on revenue of $383.5 million.

The company, which provides information and analysis to sectors such as aerospace and defense, energy, product design and environment, said it now expects earnings of $3.88 to $4.01 per share. It had previously forecast $3.84 to $4.01 per share.

It reiterated its revenue forecast of $1.53 billion to $1.58 billion.

Analysts on average had been expecting full-year earnings of $3.97 per share, excluding items, on revenue of $1.55 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The company said GlobalSpec, which it acquired earlier this month, would add to revenue in the fourth quarter.

The company bought GlobalSpec Inc, a search engine for engineering and industrial products, for $135 million, its seventh and biggest acquisition this year.

(Reporting by Sruthi Ramakrishnan in Bangalore; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)