India Inc on bonus share binge

CY2004 sees 17 companies announcing bonus issue.

India Inc is on a bonus share spree. Since the beginning of calendar 2004, as many as 17 companies have announced that they are issuing bonus shares.

Pharma major Sun Pharmaceuticals today joined the growing club of companies that are rewarding their shareholders through bonus issues. It joins four other pharmaceutical companies that have announced bonus shares in 2004.

Earlier, Unichem Laboratories (in a 1:1 ratio), Wockhardt (1:2), Alembic (2:1) and FDC (1:1) announced bonus share issues.

Sun Pharmaceuticals yesterday informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that its board of directors at a meeting on April 21 recommended an issue of bonus shares in the ratio of one share for every one share held.

Till date, in April alone, four companies have announced bonus issues.

Besides Sun Pharmaceuticals, the other three are software companies, namely, MphasiS BFL, Infosys Technologies and Wipro. MphasiS BFL issued bonus shares in the ratio of one share for every one share held.

At the same time, Infosys and Wipro both announced more liberal bonuses. While Infosys declared a bonus issue in the ratio of three shares for every one share held, Wipro announced a bonus of two shares for every one share held.

The other companies that announced bonus issues in 2004 include Haria Exports, T Spiritual World, BSEL Infrastructures, Emami, Jubilant Organsys, Berger Paints, Gravity India, Suprajit Engineering and Marico Industries.