Ratan N. Tata, chairman of India's leading corporate conglomerate, Tata Sons, is in an expansionist mood. At 69, he wants to extend Tata's brand globally. He also wants his legacy to include an institution that's an international powerhouse, not just a leading corporate player in his own country.

Because luxury hotels have long been a family trademark—ever since the opening, in 1903, of the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Bombay—Tata is eager to acquire high-end properties around the world. His strategy had been to obtain management contracts; now he seems to want to buy properties outright.

For example, Tata has acquired a 10 percent stake in Orient-Express Hotels, for an estimated $211.3 million, through Indian Hotels Co., a subsidiary of Tata's hotels division. Orient-Express has full or partial ownership of 35 hotels in 25 countries; in addition to managing these properties, the company operates luxury trains and cruises.

Those who know Tata well say that the investment in Orient-Express is only a prelude to a takeover of the entire firm. Management of Orient-Express is resisting the overture.

But it may not be possible to resist for long. The Tata Group is one of India's largest business organizations, with revenues in 2007 of $22 billion, or about 2.8 percent of India's entire economic output. As of October 5, its market capitalization was $70 billion; its 28 publicly listed enterprises include some 96 operating entities.

Hotels represent a small but fast-growing segment of the conglomerate. The unit had revenues of only $575 million in 2006, but that figure represented a 40 percent increase from 2005. The pace quickened in the most recent quarter, with revenue rising to $127 million, a 45 percent increase over the same period a year earlier. Profit was even more accelerated, rising by 50 percent, to $30 million.

Amol Rao, a research analyst with Infinity.com Financial Securities, a Mumbai-based brokerage firm, told reporters recently, "The company has outperformed our expectations, with its operating profit margins nearing 40 percent for the first time on the back of lower license fees." Said Rao, "We expect the company to continue to perform well and have a buy on the stock with a target price of $4.25 over the next year."