ITV

Tag: Essel Group

  • Digital arm of LF hits 3.2-million user mark

    Digital arm of LF hits 3.2-million user mark

    MUMBAI: livingfoodz.com, the digital arm of food and lifestyle channel from the Essel Group LF, has hit the 3.2-million user mark in March 2020. The fastest-growing web portal, with over 7.2 million page visits according to Google Analytics, focuses on food, travel, culture and lifestyle. This has placed livingfoodz.com ahead in lifestyle over many legacy players owing to its unique content, its distinctive focus on trends and TV catch up.  

    “LF has always been a torchbearer for original content, its milestone moments like this that reinstate our belief in our direction and drive towards our curated content. It is humbling to have the support of our viewers, week on week. And we hope to continue keeping our viewers engaged and invigorated in the months to come. And would love to hear from them via our social media platforms on the kinds of stories, adventures, experiences and food sojourns they would like to experience,” LF business head Amit Nair said.

    With reputed chefs and hosts and interesting concept-based shows, LF has managed to scale new heights. The channel has adopted offline and online experiences to connect with the people that make us the best in the business.

  • Dish TV – Bharti Airtel deal called off over valuation differences: report

    Dish TV – Bharti Airtel deal called off over valuation differences: report

    MUMBAI: The deal between direct-to-home (DTH) operator Dish TV’s promoter Essel Group and Bharti Airtel has been called off due to differences over valuation, according to a report in Business Standard.

    Now, the promoters of Dish TV have begun talks with a global financial investor which does not have operations in India, for half of their stakes. According to the report, Essel Group will use the cash from the sale to repurchase a five percent stake in its flagship property Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) in the next 12 months.

    The strategy is eventually to go up to 26 per cent, the report added. The Essel group expects Rs 2,000 crore from the deal, if it goes through. Last year, it sold 16.5 percent out of its 22.37 percent stake in ZEEL.

    As Bharti Airtel is looking out at expanding its DTH business to face the challenge thrown by Jio, the deal would have helped Sunil Mittal’s Airtel to emerge as the largest force in the DTH sector. Dish TV’s subscriber base is way higher than that of Airtel Digital TV.

  • Zeel issues clarification regarding resignation of 3 directors

    Zeel issues clarification regarding resignation of 3 directors

    MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) announced on Monday that independent directors Neharika Vora and Sunil Sharma along with non-independent director Subodh Kumar resigned and three new independent directors – R Gopalan, Surendra Singh and Aparajita Jain have been appointed. On the request of the Bombay Stock exchange (BSE) Zeel disclosed the reasons for the resignation.

    Irregularities in CSR spending, film advances worth Rs 2,200 crore, appropriation of Zee Entertainment's fixed deposits worth Rs 200 crore by a bank have been cited as reasons for the resignation of two of the directors along with others.

    “The board of directors have noted that all of the issues raised by the resigning directors have been duly discussed, deliberated and acted upon from time to time in the previous committee/ board meetings in which the said directors were also present,” ZEEL said in a statement.

    The company said Sunil Sharma (Independent Director) in his resignation letter dated 24 November has informed that subsequent to sale of shares by the promoter group, and reconstitution of the board, he tendered his resignation. But at the same time, Subodh Kumar and Neharika Vora flagged several issues.

    Here are the reasons and Zeel’s comment on the issue.

    Film advances given in 2018-19 to the tune of Rs 2200 crores have been cited as the first reason. Zeel commented that the information has already been disclosed annual Report and clarified in various investor interactions.

    Lack of legal action by management when a scheduled bank had appropriated Rs 200 crore of the company's fixed deposits towards promoter loans has been cited as another reason. “Issues pertaining to the wrongful revocation of the bank guarantee stand resolved with the Company having being secured by the promoter companies and appropriate legal notices were sent to the bank at the relevant time,” Zeel commented on the issue.

    Another reason was alleged laxity in spending CSR funds given to a related party foundation or trust. Zeel clarified that the CSR funds have been allocated in compliance with the law and necessary certification has been obtained.

    The directors also raised the issue that the scheduled bank wrote to all directors in October 2019 that a subsidiary of Zeel had guaranteed the repayment of certain loan given to a related party.  “The company has a legal opinion to state that the Company is not liable and in any event there has been no enforcement of the 'guarantee' by the bank, other than to write letters, including to all the directors,” Zeel commented on the issue.

    “A letter received from a PMS entity holding preference shares of the company raising questions regarding build up of related party balances and advances for content acquisition”- has been cited as one of the reasons. According to Zeel, audit of the issues pertaining to related party transactions and advances is underway by auditors.

    The issue of non implementation of certain decision of the board meeting held on 17 October relating to treasury operations has also been flagged by the directors. Against this concern, Zeel said that the company is exploring options to withdraw these deposits in a phased manner without effecting the long term relationship with these banks.No action on large outstanding from DTH operator Dish TV and MSO Siti Cable for the content supplied by Zeel has been mentioned as one of the reasons for resignation. As per Zeel’s filing in the exchange, the same has been secured by a definitive plan and the situation is being strictly monitored as instructed by the board.

  • BlackRock stake in Zeel crosses 5% mark

    BlackRock stake in Zeel crosses 5% mark

    MUMBAI: Despite the debt crisis of the promoter group of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel), foreign fund investors aren’t shying away from betting their money. New York-based BlackRock has increased its stake in the Indian media conglomerate. Before 21 November, BlackRock held 4.77 per cent stake which has now crossed 5 per cent.

    Before the acquisition, BlackRock had 45,837,578 shares carrying voting rights in the company. Now, it has increased by 0.24 per cent in an on-market transaction reaching 48,191,811 shares. Post the acquisition, the total diluted share of BlackRock in Zeel stands at 960,483,235, as per a listing in the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

    On the morning of 20 November, Essel Group announced its plan to sell 16.5 per cent stake in its flagship property  Zeel to financial investors to clear off its massive debt. Their offer putting on sale 16.5 per cent of the Essel group’s pledged holding in Zeel was quickly mopped up by existing and long-term investors in Zeel at a price of Rs 304 per share the very next morning.

    In another development, media maven Subhash Chandra has resigned as chairman of Zeel with immediate effect. While the board has been reconstituted, three new independent directors have been appointed in lieu of two independent and one nominee director of Essel Group, namely Niharika Vora, Sunil Sharma and Subodh Kumar, respectively.

    The company said in a statement that reconstitution of the board was to strengthen and induct independent members with varied experiences to build value and provide a strong signal to the existing and new institutional investors who have recently reposed their faith in the intrinsic value of the company, by investing Rs 4770 crore.

  • ZEEL reconstitutes its board even as chairman Subhash Chandra resigns

    ZEEL reconstitutes its board even as chairman Subhash Chandra resigns

    MUMBAI : The board of ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) , during the meeting held today, completed the process of reconstitution of the board and appointed three new independent directors in lieu of two independent and one nominee Director of Essel Group, namely Niharika Vora, Sunil Sharma and Subodh Kumar, respectively. The newly appointed independent director include: former bureaucrat (once finance secretary) and public sector professional R Gopalan, retired IPS professional Surendra Singh, and art entrepreneur Aparajita Jain.

    The founder of ZEE and the pioneer of India's private satellite television industry, Subhash Chandra, during the meeting, expressed his intent to step aside as chairman, which he founded way back in 1992. The board accepted his resignation with regret and applauded his vision for the Company and the industry at large.

    While Chandra stepped aside from the chair, he also expressed the desire to step aside as a board member. However, the entire board requested him to not only continue as a board member but also to be the 'mentor' to the executive management and its MD & CEO.

    The reconstitution of the board was to strengthen and induct independent members with varied experiences to build value and provide a strong signal to the existing and new institutional investors who have recently reposed their faith in the intrinsic value of the company, by investing Rs. 4770 crore. The reconstituted board consists of six independent directors and two members from the Essel Group.

    Besides, M Lakshminarayanan has resigned as Chief Compliance Officer and Company Secretary. In his place, Ashish Agarwal has been appointed as the Company Secretary of Zee with effect from 26 November.

    Ashish , a Commerce Graduate and LLB from MDS University, Ajmer, is a Compliance professional with rich experience of over 20 years, including five years with Essel Group.

  • Zeel promoter stake sale gets confidence vote from SBICap and Edelweiss

    Zeel promoter stake sale gets confidence vote from SBICap and Edelweiss

    MUMBAI: There’s a sense of relief at Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel). Chairman Subhash Chandra, and managing director & CEO Punit Goenka said they would go the whole hog to repay their obligations. Even if it meant dropping the promoter holding in the group to never-before-imagined levels. On the morning of 20 November, Chandra, Goenka and their team of hardworking financial men and number crunchers did exactly that. Their offer putting on sale 16.5 per cent of the Essel group’s pledged holding in Zeel, was quickly mopped up by existing and long term investors in Zeel at a price of Rs 304 per share.

    While news items pegged  the the sale proceeds Rs 4,343.18 crore, those in the know believe the figure is higher at Rs 4,560 crore. The money raised would help the Essel group pay back a majority of its debt. Following this, the promoter group still owes Rs 2,400 crore to its debtors.

    Two brokerage and investment advisory firms –  SBI Cap Securities and Edelweiss – expressed their confidence and continue to be bullish on the Zeel stock, in research reports sent out to investor clients. They have revised their target price estimate to Rs 400 and Rs 443 respectively. The Zeel share was trading at around Rs 340-350 level at the last closing.

    The SBI Cap Securities report says:  “We believe Zee remains well poised to continue with its market share gains. We expect the ad revenue growth to remain tepid in FY20 estimate, but pick up in FY21 estimate  (+13  per cent YoY), and subscription revenues to maintain their strong growth trajectory in FY20e (+27 per cent  YoY) and FY21e (+14 per cent YoY). We raise our (discounted cash flow) DCF based TP (target price)  to Rs 400 (from Rs 333 as we roll forward to FY21 estimates  and build for marginal improvement in working capital with better focus and execution.”

    “While FY20 suffered a slump in advertising, FY21 is likely to be better owing to the anticipated GDP revival and benefits from corporate tax cut. Given that a significant portion of the pledging has been now resolved, we are raising the target price earning multiple to 20x (from 18x), which yields a revised target price of Rs 443 (INR399 earlier). The stock is trading at 15x/13.5x on FY20/21E earning per share,” the Edelweiss report expounded.  

    Both did not give much weightage to the concerns around the promoter’s holding in ZEEL due to the sharp fall in shareholding. After this deal, the Essel group promoters will hold just 5 per cent stake in the company as against 42 per cent in December 2018 with Punit Goenka continuing to act in his current role as MD and CEO at ZEEL.

    Earlier, 96 per cent of the promoters’ stake was pledged in Zeel and the group had Rs 7000 crore worth of shares pledged. The brokerage firm Edelwieiss said the stake sale would remove the overhang related to promoter pledge—down from 96 per cent to 20 per cent (1.1 per cent of company stake).

    Analysts at Edelweiss further added:  “Despite multiple setbacks over the last 12 months such as group-level issues, new regulatory framework (NTO), liquidity crunch, and ad slowdown, ZEE sustained a strong business performance. In face of a sluggish advertising environment, the business managed to deliver better advertising growth than peers such as SunTV Network. We expect the advertising revenue growth to pick up in FY21 on the back of the anticipated GDP revival, increased product launches and strong market share position attained by ZEE’s channels portfolio.”

    SBI CAP Securities’ report says:  “We acknowledge that the existing promoter group has established a robust template of profitability and market share gains by establishing Zee as one of the most valuable franchises in the Indian media market. The management’s focus is expected to get clearer from hereon and reflect in better on the ground execution, in our view.”

    According to SBICAP Securities, divestments in other media or infra assets would gain more importance now in resolving promoters’ remaining debt issues. It has a deadline of April 2020 by which it has to clear its reaminder Rs 2,400 crore in debt.

    In November last year, Zeel had revealed the decision of its promoters to sell up to 50 per cent of their equity in the company to a strategic partner.

    Earlier in August, ZEEL reached an agreement with US-based Invesco-Oppenheimer Developing Markets Fund for 11 per cent (around Rs 400 per share) of the promoter stake for Rs 4,224 crore. At that time, ZEEL MD and CEO Punit Goenka did not rule out selling more stake in the company.

  • Essel Group to sell 16.5% stake in ZEEL to repay loan obligations

    Essel Group to sell 16.5% stake in ZEEL to repay loan obligations

    MUMBAI: Debt-ridden Essel Group  is planning to sell a 16.5 per cent stake in its flagship property  Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) to financial investors to clear off its massive debt. After this transaction, Essel Group’s overall holdings in ZEEL will be five per cent, as mentioned in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

    “The group seeks to sell up to 16.5 per cent stake in ZEEL to financial investors, in order to repay loan obligations to certain lenders of the group for whose benefit such shares are currently encumbered (and who have consented to such share sale by the Group). Out of the aforesaid the group seeks to sell 2.3 per cent stake in ZEEL to OFI Global China Fund, LLC and or its affiliates,” the company stated in a statement.

    “This development reaffirms the group's positive progress on its overall asset divestment approach, undertaken to generate adequate liquidity for the repayment process. The group is alsoworking actively on further divestments including its medial non-media assets and remains confident to complete the same,” it added.

    Earlier in August, ZEEL reached an agreement with US-based Invesco-Oppenheimer Developing Markets Fund for 11 per cent (around Rs 400 per share) of the promoter stake for Rs 4,224 crore. At that time, ZEEL MD and CEO Punit Goenka did not rule out selling more stake in the company.

    In November last year, Subhas Chandra-led Zeel had revealed the decision of its promoters to sell up to 50 per cent of their equity in the company to a strategic partner. 

  • OFI Global China Fund to buy further 2.3 per cent stake in ZEEL

    OFI Global China Fund to buy further 2.3 per cent stake in ZEEL

    MUMBAI: Essel group is planning to sell 16.5 per cent stake in its flagship property Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) to financial investors, of which 2.3 per cent will be sold to OFI Global China Fund — which already holds 8.7 per cent stake in the media company.

     “The Group seeks to sell up to -16.5 per cent stake in ZEEL to financial investors, in order to repay loan obligations to certain lenders of the group for whose benefit such shares are currently encumbered (and who have consented to such share sale by the Group). Out of the aforesaid the Group seeks to sell-2.3 per cent stake in ZEEL to OFI Global China Fund, LLC and or its affiliates,” the company stated in a statement. OFI Global China Fund is a subsidiary of Invesco Oppenheimer Developing Markets Fund.

    “This development reaffirms the Group's positive progress on its overall asset divestment approach, undertaken to generate adequate liquidity for the repayment process. The Group is also working actively on further divestments including its medial non-media assets and remains confident to complete the same,” it added.

    Earlier in August, ZEEL reached an agreement with US-based Invesco-Oppenheimer Developing Markets Fund for 11 per cent (around Rs 400 per share) of the promoter stake for Rs 4,224 crore. At that time, ZEEL MD and CEO Punit Goenka did not rule out selling more stake in the company.

    In November last year, Subhas Chandra-led Zeel had revealed the decision of its promoters to sell up to 50 per cent of their equity in the company to a strategic partner.

  • ZEEL promoters pledge 10.71% shareholding with Russia’s VTB Capital

    ZEEL promoters pledge 10.71% shareholding with Russia’s VTB Capital

    MUMBAI:  Zee Entertainment Enterprise Ltd’s (ZEEL) promoter Essel Group pledged 10.71 per cent shareholding in the media company with Russia’s VTB Capital Plc.

    According to a disclosure made by VTB Capital to the stock exchanges, the encumbrance on 10.2 crore shares of Zee owned by Essel Media Ventures Ltd was created pursuant to a loan agreement executed on 4 September 2017.

    As per Sebi’s new rules related to pledging which came into effect on 1 October, disclosure of detailed reasons for encumbrance if the shares pledged equal or exceed 50 per cent of the total promoter holding (including shares owned by persons acting in concert) or 20 per cent of the total share capital of the company is needed.

    As of 30 June 2019, the promoters were holding about 35.79 per cent of the company. Subhash Chandra-led Essel Group has been working to sell assets due to high debt crisis. Essel Group agreed to sell up to 11 per cent stake for Rs 4,224 crore in Zee to Invesco Oppenheimer to repay lenders back in August.

  • Essel Group, lenders agree on timeline extension for sale of assets

    Essel Group, lenders agree on timeline extension for sale of assets

    MUMBAI: Multi-faceted business conglomerate Essel Group announced and confirmed that its lenders have unanimously agreed to extend the timeline, enabling the group to optimise the value output from the sale of its assets.

    As per the official communication issued on 20 September 2019, the group was in a steady and progressive dialogue with all the lenders. The mentioned extension of the timeline was requested purely in the interest deriving the right value of the precious assets of the group.

    The lenders have extended complete support to the group and its promoters, recognising the intrinsic value of the assets and the overall asset divestment process undertaken. The group remains confident on further divestments including its non-media assets.