MUMBAI: They are some of the biggest companies - by revenues or profitability but they are all unlisted and in the private domain.
UTVi has dug out all the information about these companies that you may be interested in. Here is uncovering India's Best Kept Secrets.
The first company in this series, which we will uncover and discover, is from the Tata stable. Not only is this company possibly the most profitable unlisted company in India, but its EPS is higher than any company listed on BSE.
It has a total Income of over Rs 3,800 crore, and net profit of Rs 3,300crore, which translates into an earnings per share of Rs 82,000. To top it - reserves to the tune of Rs 12,000 crore.
Name of the company? None other than Tata Sons - the holding company for all Tata Group 's investments. The market value of its investments is over a Rs 1 lakh crore, but with some of its biggest subsidiaries yet to be listed, there is a great potential for value unlocking.
Almost the whole of its billion dollar income is from dividend declared by its listed subsidiaries and profit from sale of shares in these companies. Dividend from subsidiary TCS is the single biggest contributor to Tata Sons' income with Tata Motors and Tata Steel, too, chipping in with decent amounts.
Tata Sons has investments in 100+ companies of which only a dozen-odd companies are listed. It has 82 subsidiaries of which 80 are unlisted. Some of the prominent ones are its DTH venture - Tata Sky and its insurance JV with AIG, both loss-making as of now.
Unlike Bharti and RCom, which report quarterly profits in excess of Rs 1,500 crore, Tata's telecom subsidiary, Tata Teleservices, is bleeding with losses close to Rs 1,000 crores for FY07. Its retail chain, Croma, which commenced operations during FY07, also reported a marginal loss of Rs 18 crore in its first year.
Not surprisingly, Tata Sons is also a major source of funds for its group companies. It stands guarantor for thousands of crores of loans given to its subsidiary companies.
So, while Tata Sons has cash reserves of around Rs 2,500 crore, it still has Rs 4,000 crore debt in its balance sheet.
As for the company management, apart from a couple of names that may not sound familiar, most of the 10 directors on the board of Tata Sons are trusted lieutenants of chairman Ratan Tata.
The shareholding pattern of Tata Sons does not seem to have changed much over the last few years. 51% stake in Tata Sons is held by two trusts, Sir Dorabji Tata and Sir Ratan Tata Trust.
According to the Tata group website, these trusts were created by sons of families of Jamsetji Tata, the founder of the Tata Group. Ratan Tata is believed to be a trustee in both trusts. Shapoorji Pallonji Group, one of the oldest construction companies in India, holds 18% stake in Tata Sons. Ratan Tata holds just 3,368 shares in his personal capacity, which is less than 1%.
An interesting note in the Director's Report that suggests Tata Sons' worry about a potential hostile takeover attempt of some of its listed subsidiaries, where its stake is less than 50%.
The directors' report says: "During the year, significant investments were made to increase the shareholding in several listed operating Tata companies."
While Tata Sons may be one of the most profitable unlisted companies, it also has one of the biggest balance sheets of any Indian company. Especially if one were to consider the market value of its investments in group companies. No wonder then that many Tata group shareholders want Tata Sons too to be listed.
Tata Sons: Shareholding Pattern
Total equity shares: 4,04,146 of Rs 1,000 each
Name of holder |
No. of shares |
1.Shapoor Mistry |
108 |
2.Sterling Investment Corp. (Shapoorji Pallonji group) |
40,319 |
3. Cyrus Investments (Shapoorji Pallonji group) |
33,925 |
4. Ratan Tata |
3,368 |
5. Sir Dorabji Tata Trust |
1,13,067 |
6. Sir Ratan Tata Trust |
95,211 |
7. Tata Investment Corp |
326 |
8. Sarvajanik Seva Trust |
396 |
9. RD Tata Trust |
8,838 |
10. Tata Social Welfare Trust |
15,076 |
11. Tata Education Trust |
15,075 |
12. JRD Tata Trust |
16,200 |
13. Tata Power |
5,673 |
14. Tata Tea |
1,755 |
15. Indian Hotels |
4,500 |
16. Tata Industries |
2,295 |
17. Tata Chemicals |
10,237 |
18. Kalimati Investment Company |
12,375 |
19. Tata International Ltd |
155 |
20. Tata Motors |
12,375 |
21. Piloo Tata |
487 |
22. Jimmy Tata |
157 |
23. Farhad Choksey |
157 |
24. Simone Tata |
2,011 |
25. Noel Tata |
2,055 |
26. Virendra Singh Chauhan (Chhota Udaipur) |
1 |
27. MK Tata Trust |
2,421 |
Cash Reserves - Rs 2,400 crore
Dividend to Shareholders - Rs 280 crore
Remuneration to Directors - Rs 25 crore
TATA SONS - FINANCIALS FY07
Total Income |
Rs 3,852 crore |
Net Profit |
Rs 3,335 crore |
EPS |
Rs 82,322 |
Reserves & Surplus |
Rs 12,123 crore |
Dividend Income |
Rs 1,300 crore |
Profit on sale of shares |
Rs 2,300 crore |
Income From
TCS - Rs 755 crore
Tata Steel - Rs 145 crore
Tata Motors - Rs 109 crore
Tata Sky FY07
Revenue - Rs 260 crore
Net Loss - Rs 650 crore
Tata AIG Life FY07
Revenue - Rs 1,131 crore
Net Loss - Rs 10 crore
Tata Teleservices FY07
Net Loss - Rs 900 crore
Tata Sons: Directors
Ratan Tata
Ishaat Hussain
Arun Gandhi
N Soonawala
J J Irani
Krishna Kumar
Syamal Gupta
R Gopalakrishnan
R A Rosling
F K Kavarana
Cyrus Mistry