Cigarettes-to-hotels major ITC Ltd had received an enquiry from an “intermediary” to explore the possibility of a bid for Coffee Day Enterprises. Both ITC and Coffee Day Enterprises have, however, denied any acquisition talks.

Coffee Day Enterprise runs the country’s largest coffee chain store, Café Coffee Day. It has over 1,700 outlets.

According to market sources, the offer that came to ITC was not from the company’s (Coffee Day Enterprises) board or any official representative.

“We write to advise that the company on an ongoing basis receives enquiries from market participants which are suitably evaluated. One such enquiry was also received from an intermediary of Cafe Coffee Day. However, no progress has been made on the matter,” it said, in a stock market notification.

The Kolkata-based company has been looking to grow the non-cigarette FMCG business for quite some time now. Its current offerings in the coffee space are through the ‘Sunbean’ brand, sold across its own hotels and via the company website.

Coffee Day Enterprises, in a notice to the bourses, categorically denied talks with ITC. The former called reports in this regard as “factually incorrect” and said it was “unaware” about it. The Coffee Day Enterprises stock closed at ₹72.80, up by 4.97 per cent, at the BSE, on Wednesday. ITC’s stock closed at ₹241.60, down 2.01 per cent at the BSE.

Salary hike for CMD Puri

Meanwhile, the board of directors of ITC has recommended a hike in the ‘basic/consolidated’ salary of its Chairman and Managing Director, Sanjiv Puri, and three other directors — Nakul Anand, R Tandon and B Sumant.

Puri’s revised monthly ‘basic/consolidated’ salary, from October 1, is proposed to be ₹22 lakh, a 47 per cent jump, over his current ‘basic/consolidated’ salary of ₹15 lakh. The three other board members are expected to see a 30 per cent hike in the ‘basic/consolidated’ salary, to ₹13 lakh a month (up from ₹10 lakh).

The company, while seeking shareholders’ nod, has, in a stock market notification, said, “the number of stock options remaining under the Company’s Employee Stock Option Scheme is limited and the option for introducing another Equity Based Long Term Incentive Scheme is currently not available.” Hence, there is a requirement of “restructuring of executive compensation”.

“Additionally, the Committee and the Board, while recommending the remuneration of S Puri considered his enlarged role as Chairman of the company with effect from May 13, 2019,” it further added.

 

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