Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd’s promoters have opted out of the company’s proposed Rs. 600 crore share buyback, which will see the media firm repurchase up to 6.59 crore shares at Rs. 91 apiece, representing 6.86 percent of its existing paid-up equity capital.

The company’s board has approved the buyback through the tender offer route, on a proportionate basis, at Rs. 91 per share, payable in cash.

The proposed repurchase will cover up to 6,59,34,065 fully paid-up equity shares of face value Re. 1 each, Zee said in a regulatory filing to the stock market BSE yesterday.

“The Board has noted the intention of the Promoters and members of the Promoter Group of the Company not to participate in the proposed buy back,” Zee said in the regulatory filing.

The board has fixed November 25, 2026, as the record date to determine shareholders eligible to participate in the buyback.

At least 15 percent of the shares proposed to be bought back, or the number of shares entitled to small shareholders, whichever is higher, will be reserved for the latter.

The board has also retained the flexibility to increase the buyback price and correspondingly reduce the number of shares to be repurchased, without changing the overall buyback size.

Such a revision can be made up to one working day before the record date.

Explaining the rationale behind the decision, Zee said the board had evaluated the company’s financial strength, free cash flow and business outlook, besides considering investor and shareholder feedback.

It described the buyback as an optimal route to reward shareholders and reinforce confidence in the company’s fundamentals and future growth plans.

“The Board believes that the Company’s intrinsic value is not appropriately reflected in its current market valuation,” Chairman R Gopalan said, adding that the buyback was aimed at reinforcing confidence in the company’s ability to generate long-term shareholder value.

The company has appointed Emkay Global Financial Services as the merchant banker for the buyback, while further details on the process and timelines will be announced in due course.