South African investment firm Foord Asset Management has increased its stake in Adcock Ingram to 15%, according to a regulatory filing on Friday. The recent stake purchase has made Foord the second-biggest shareholder in the actively-contested pharmaceutical firm, according to Moneyweb.

The Johannesburg-based Adcock is the center of a $1.2-billion cash and share takeover bid from Chilean drug maker CFR Pharmaceuticals. However, the future of the deal is uncertain for this deal, the report said. An opposition between two of Adcock's biggest shareholders, the local conglomerate Bidvest Holdings and state-owned Public Investment Corporation (PIC), the report explained.

Together, the PIC and Bidvest hold at least 29% of Adcock. The report said this stake is enough to veto the deal at a vote scheduled next month. The said deal requires approval from shareholder holding 75% of Adcock, the report explained.

Thomson Reuters data show that Foord held a 3.58% stake in Adcock at the end of June, Moneyweb said in its report.