It’s raining shares for employees at top companies
Top blue-chip companies awarded crores of shares to their employees.
Seeking to reward their staff amid an uptrend in the stock market,top blue-chip companies like HDFC Bank,ITC,Lamp;T,Kotak Mahindra Bank and Wipro have awarded crores of shares to their employees and many more such equity offerings appear to be in the pipeline.
As the financial year 2012-13 draws to an end next month,20 of the country’s biggest blue-chip firms have together allotted shares worth nearly Rs 5,500 crore to their staff this fiscal upon the exercise of employee stock options.
During the remaining period of the current year,thousands of crores worth equity shares might be further allotted as both the companies and employees tend to prefer exercise of stock options towards the fiscal-end and during a rising equity market.
The market benchmark Sensex has appreciated by over 11 per cent so far in the current fiscal,while the gains were much higher before some correction and consolidation in the stock market during the recent weeks.
Among the top firms,premier private sector lender HDFC Bank has allotted 2.55 crore shares worth over Rs 1,680 crore to employees and FMCG major ITC has allotted 3.78 crore shares Rs 1,104.89 crore to their respective employees.
Among those leading the pack,housing finance giant HDFC has also given 1.14 crore shares Rs 916.67 crore and engineering and infrastructure conglomerate Lamp;T has allotted 29.87 lakh shares Rs 428.50 crore,data compiled from stock exchange filings show.
Most of the listed companies have Employee Stock Option Plans under which employees receive the right to purchase a certain number of shares in the company at a pre-determined price.
This is given as a reward for their performance and also acts as a motivation tool for employees.
Employees typically have to wait for a certain duration known as vesting period before they can exercise the right to purchase the shares.
Kotak Mahindra Bank with 41.74 lakh shares worth Rs 277.48 crore,Axis Bank with 18.61 lakh shares Rs 262.12 crore,HCL Technologies with 25.92 lakh shares Rs 179.91 crore,Wipro with 39.83 lakh shares Rs 165.52 crore and Ambuja Cement with 71.29 lakh shares Rs 135.46 crore are also among the firms that allotted scrips worth at least Rs 100 crore at current prices in this fiscal year.
Major companies which allotted shares worth at least Rs 10 crore to employees in 2012-13 financial year include ICICI Bank Rs 73.85 crore,Lupin Rs 51.22 crore,Dr Reddys Lab Rs 49.76 crore,IDFC Rs 36.90 crore,Hindustan Unilever
Rs 25.44 crore,Ranbaxy Rs 22.05 crore,UltraTech Rs 20.21 crore and Grasim Rs 14.31 crore,data shows.
Besides,DLF,Infosys and Hindalco Industries also gave employees currently in Rs 1-6 crore range.
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