GECs
The Zee Telefilms share: QUO VADIS?
The Zee Telefilms stock has seen a lot of activity over the past two days. Positive for a change. Compared to the 15 million or so trade two days ago, 32.3 million shares were traded yesterday and 1.1 million today. Two days ago, there were more sellers than buyers which led to a collapse in the ZTL share price from Rs 136 to Rs 114 and then to Rs 105.50 yesterday. This started off a wave of panic in the investment community.
Since then, the ZTL scrip has been on a recovery path. The share climbed to close at Rs 138 by the time trading ended today. The reason: Solomon Smith Barney (SSB) has put a buy recommendation on the stock. It says the share will hit the Rs 273 mark by end this year.
SSB has forecast a 45 per cent compounded annual earnings growth for ZTL between financial year 2000 and financial year 2002. The rapid growth is expected after the conversion of its flagship channel Zee TV into a basic pay channel as it is expected to be encrypted some time in April this year.
According to an analyst with a leading securities firm: “The market has already discounted the Budget effect and the results that ZTL is expected to report in the last quarter, so at this level we recommend that investors buy into the stock. It is attractive even a pat rice of Rs 170-175 (it yields a price-earning ratio of 27-28). In the previous quarter of this year it had a net profit of Rs 470 million; in the last quarter of last year, the net profit was Rs 260 million. We expect the net profit for Q4 this year to be somewhere between these two extremes, even if if Zee TV’s performance has deteriorated as compared to last year. This will take the price to upper side.”
The SSB prediction is the opposite of a recommendation made on 3 March by Goldman Sachs which has downgraded this stock. In its report, it has has lowered the estimates for Zee’s earnings per share for 2002 from Rs 6.84 to Rs 6.31 and in fiscal 2003 from Rs 9.98 to Rs 9.1. This warning actually led to the slide in the share price and it shed 15.99 per cent on that day.
The scrip has clipped off over 90 per cent of its value (from its all time high of Rs 1600 in Feb 2000 ) over the last 10 months after its share split while the Sensex has shed 33% of its value. Still it is considered as a market out-performer by some analysts.
Adding to the uneasiness about the share is the buzz that an overseas corporate body is offloading ZTL stock. Zee Telefilms has denied that it or its promoter chairman Subhash Chandra is behind any of the selling.
GECs
Sahara One reports financial results, notes director exit and business realignment
Muted revenues, steady expenses and strategic adjustments shape company’s current phase
MUMBAI: In a tale where the sands seem to be slipping faster than they can be gathered, Sahara One Media and Entertainment Limited has reported another quarter of wafer-thin income and widening losses, even as a boardroom exit adds to the unease.
The company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that its board, in a meeting held on April 4, approved its unaudited financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2025. The numbers paint a stark picture. Total income for the quarter stood at just Rs 0.13 lakh, unchanged sequentially and sharply down from Rs 0.26 lakh a year earlier.
Losses, meanwhile, deepened. The company posted a net loss of Rs 24.16 lakh for the quarter, compared to Rs 18.81 lakh in the June quarter and Rs 39.69 lakh in the same period last year. For the six months ended September 2025, the cumulative loss stood at Rs 39.69 lakh, while the full-year loss for FY25 was reported at Rs 60.72 lakh.
Expenses continued to outweigh income by a wide margin. Total expenses for the quarter came in at Rs 24.30 lakh, led by employee benefit costs of Rs 6.51 lakh and other expenses of Rs 17.78 lakh. Earnings per share remained in the red at Rs (0.11) for the quarter.
The balance sheet reflects a company with significant assets on paper but limited operational momentum. Total assets stood at Rs 23,065.57 lakh as of September 30, 2025, broadly unchanged from March 2025. Equity share capital remained steady at Rs 2,152.50 lakh, while total equity was reported at Rs 18,004.85 lakh.
Cash and cash equivalents saw a modest uptick to Rs 6.75 lakh from Rs 4.68 lakh earlier, supported by a positive operating cash flow of Rs 180.01 lakh for the period.
Yet, beneath these numbers lies a more complex narrative. The company’s auditors flagged their inability to obtain sufficient evidence to form a conclusion on the financial statements, citing lack of access to records. They also raised concerns over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern, pointing to insufficient funds, delayed recoveries, and stalled content investments.
Adding to the governance overhang, the company disclosed that Rana Zia has resigned as whole-time director, effective October 16, 2025, citing other professional commitments. The resignation, noted and accepted by the board, also brings an end to her role across company committees.
Regulatory pressures continue to loom large. The Securities and Exchange Board of India has already initiated penal actions for non-compliance with listing norms, with trading in the company’s shares remaining suspended. There is also a risk of promoter demat accounts being frozen.
Legacy legal issues remain unresolved. A substantial deposit of Rs 694,027.88 thousand linked to the long-running OFCD dispute involving Sahara group entities is still under the purview of the Supreme Court of India. Restrictions on asset disposal continue to weigh on the company’s financial flexibility.
Operationally, challenges persist across multiple fronts. Advances worth Rs 1,92,916 thousand given for film content remain stuck, with delays in project completion and uncertain recoverability. The company’s YouTube channel, despite being operational, has generated no revenue for over three years due to compliance lapses. In a further twist, management has indicated that revenues may have been fraudulently diverted through unauthorised changes to its AdSense account, with a police complaint in the works.
There are also missed revenue opportunities. Television content rights continue to be used by a related party despite the expiry of the licence agreement, with fresh negotiations still underway.
For now, Sahara One Media and Entertainment Limited appears caught between legacy disputes and present-day operational hurdles. As losses linger and governance questions mount, the road to recovery looks less like a sprint and more like a slow trudge through shifting sands.
