News: Work from home has added to expenses, says TCS -12/06/2020

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/work-from-home-has-added-to-expenses-says-tcs/articleshow/76325500.cms Updated On: Jun 12 Work from home has added to expenses, says TCS Working from home during the nationwide lockdown added to expenses, Tata Sons chairman said. Employees working from home during the nationwide lockdown was not a cost-saving measure for TCS NSE 4.31 % and, in fact, added to expenses, said Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, pointing out that the IT services provider had already signed longterm leases for its offices. “It is not being done for cost reasons. In fact, TCS has long term leases, so currently it is all investment and more expenses,” Chandrasekaran told shareholders at Tata Consultancy Services’ annual general meeting, the first virtual gathering of stakeholders by any Indian corporation. Tata Sons is the parent entity of TCS. “This (work from home arrangement) is something that has happened suddenly and TCS has not seen it as a temporary measure. TCS has not responded to it (Covid-19) as a stop-gap arrangement. TCS can only see and gauge what the trend is going to be. So, we are seeing this as a trend and are making significant investments,” he said. Separately, in response to questions on the software services exporter’s healthy cash reserves and opportunities to acquire companies at cheap valuations, Chandrasekaran said, “There are no plans of acquisition at this stage.” “We study every single acquisition opportunity but, as we have always said, we have to be disciplined in terms of looking at acquisitions. We don’t just acquire for the sake of revenues.” Rather than acquiring companies, he said there was “tremendous opportunity for TCS to continue to build the business across various segments.” In his address to shareholders, CEO Rajesh Gopinathan said the company had generated “unprecedented” payouts to shareholders since financial year 2016. “Over the last five years, we have distributed Rs 112,422 crore cumulatively in the form of dividends and buybacks to our shareholders. This is unprecedented and unsurpassed by any other company in corporate India,” Gopinathan said. TCS declared a dividend of Rs 6 per share, taking its dividend total for financial year 2020 to Rs 73 per equity share, which included four interim as well as special dividend. The total payout in the year stood at Rs 31,895 crore.