MUMBAI: Kalanidhi Maran’s Sun TV Ltd has announced a net profit of Rs 597.7 million for the quarter ended December 2006 as compared to Rs 399 million shown during the corresponding quarter in 2005.
Revenues for the quarter increased to Rs 1250.2 million from Rs 948.1 crore shown in the year-ago quarter.
The Sun TV board also anounced an interim dividend of 30 per cent or Rs 3 per share.
MUMBAI: Sun TV Ltd has decided to merge satellite broadcasting companies Gemini TV Pvt Ltd and Udaya TV Pvt Ltd (except its FM radio division) with itself. Enam Financial Consultants and DSP Merrill Lynch have been appointed as advisors and the valuation report is expected to be submitted soon.
The final holding of the shareholders of Gemini and Udaya in Sun TV Ltd. will, thus, depend on the share swap ratio. The equity shares of Udaya TV, as of 7 March 2006, are held by Kalanithi Maran (66.67), S. Selvam (16.67 per cent) and S Selvi (16.66 per cent). In Gemini, Maran has 26.5 per cent, Kal Communication (a promoter Group company), 23.5 per cent, K Bharathi 30 per cent, Indira Anand 16 per cent and A Sai Siva Jyoti 4 per cent.
Indiantelevision.com was the first to report that Sun TV would be merging Gemini TV and Udaya TV with itself. Maran’s broadcasting interests in the southern languages would, thus, be consolidated under a single company.
When contacted, promoter Kalanithi Maran had this to say: “We are expecting the report from Enam and DSP Merrill by Thursday. The shareholders of Gemini and Udaya TV will be given shares in Sun TV based on this.”
Gemini TV posted a revenue of Rs 1.75 billion for the year ended 31 March 2006. The company owns Gemini TV, Teja TV, Gemini News, Gemini Music and Gemini Cable Vision.
Udaya TV’s revenues for the last fiscal stood at Rs 943 million. It owns four television channels, Udaya TV, Udaya Movies, Udaya Varthegalu and Udaya TV II.
“With this proposed merger Sun TV shareholders should benefit immensely from the highly profitable operations and strong growth plans of both Gemini TV and Udaya TV. Sun will have an integrated growth strategy for all south Indian language channels, and thus build a dominant presence in entire south India,” Maran says.
Sun TV currently operates four television channels – Sun TV, KTV, Sun News and Sun Music – in Tamil language and two television channels – Surya TV and Kiran TV – in Malayalam language, and three FM Radio Stations, and another three FM Radio Stations through its subsidiaries. The two subsidiaries, Kal Radio Ltd and South Asia FM Ltd, jointly hold 41 FM radio licences for running stations across India.
“With this proposed merger, Sun TV Ltd. will become one of the largest television broadcasters in India,” the company says in a statement.
The Sun TV scrip gained 1.13 per cent today in the BSE to close the day at Rs 1528.45.
MUMBAI : The market is expecting founder-promoter Kalanithi Maran to merge the affiliate companies, Udaya TV Pvt Ltd and Gemini TV Pvt Ltd, where he has significant equity interests, with Sun TV Ltd.
Maran had early this year raised Rs 6.03 billion through a public float of Sun TV which included the Tamil and Malayalam channels. But he kept his popular channels in Telugu and Kannada outside the ambit of the initial public offering (IPO) as they were under separate entities and had other minority stakeholders.
The speculation in stock trading circles is that the decision would soon be taken to merge the two profit-making companies with Sun TV, offering investors a width of strong channels across the four southern states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala.
The rumour comes at a time when Sun TV has made an announcement in the BSE that its board would be meeting on 27 November to “consider the proposed merger of satellite television broadcasting companies.”
The stock would see a sigificant boost if “these rumours” turn out to be true. “The valuation of the company will shoot up if Gemini and Udaya are merged with Sun. It is not only the topline which will inflate but the bottomline will also continue to be strong,” stock market analysts say.
Indiantelevision.com’s attempt to reach senior executives in Sun TV to get an official confirmation proved futile. Maran was also not available for comment.
The equity shares of Udaya TV, as of 7 March 2006, are held by Maran (66.67), S. Selvam (16.67 per cent) and S Selvi (16.66 per cent). In Gemini, Maran has 26.5 per cent, Kal Communication (a promoter Group company), 23.5 per cent, K Bharathi 30 per cent, Indira Anand 16 per cent and A Sai Siva Jyoti 4 per cent.
Before going for an IPO, Maran consolidated his ownership position by buying out entire stakes of Sharad Kumar and Dayalu Ammal (wife of DMK president M Karunanidhi). Analysts say he will try to do the same thing by buying out the minor partners in Gemini and Udaya before he decides to merge these two companies with Sun TV.
“We don’t know if he also already bought out the stakes. If he has, the path is clear for him to go ahead with the merger,” an analyst in a brokering firm says.
What is further fuelling the speculation is that Maran has recently consolidated the Telugu and Kannada channels under the Gemini and Udaya brands respectively. Teja News has been renamed Gemini News and Aditya TV as Gemini Music. Ushe TV, similarly, is now called Udaya Movies.
Gemini and Udaya already share a business relationship with Sun TV Ltd. For instance, the approvals for uplinking Udaya News, Ushe TV, Aditya TV and Teja News have been granted in the name of Sun TV Ltd.
Maran also has the option of consolidating Gemini and Udaya’s financials and taking them for an IPO. “This, however, is not what the market is expecting. We believe these two companies will merge with Sun TV to create a media behemoth,” analysts say.
The Sun TV scrip opened the trading day at Rs 1361.55, reached a high of Rs 1389 and closed at Rs 1363.85.