TMCnet News
India's Infosys profit rises on new orders [Times of Oman](Times of Oman Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) New Delhi: Infosys posted first-quarter profit that beat analyst estimates as India's second-largest software services company won more orders. Net income rose 22 per cent to Rs28.9 billion ($480 million) in the three months ended June from Rs23.7 billion a year earlier, Bengaluru-based Infosys said in a statement Friday. That beat the Rs26.5 billion median of 33 analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The company maintained its full-year forecast for sales growth. Billionaire N.R. Narayana Murthy, who returned as chairman in June 2013 to help revive growth, boosted margins and is set to hand control of the software exporter he co-founded to Chief Executive Officer designate Vishal Sikka. Infosys won contracts last quarter from companies including Orange and Boston-based Eastern Bank. "Things are more or less stabilising. From here on we will not see the same volatility," said Pankaj Kapoor, a Mumbai-based analyst at Standard Chartered Securities. "They'll still have slower growth, but things will be stable. That is the big message from this quarter." Infosys kept its April forecast for full-year sales growth in US dollar terms of seven per cent to nine per cent.CEO successionRevenue climbed 13 per cent to Rs127.7 billion, compared with the Rs128 billion median of analyst estimates. "We saw positive trends in our large deal wins during the quarter," U.B. Pravin Rao, chief operating officer, said in the statement. "This momentum will hold us in good stead as we focus on increasing volumes." Operating profit margin widened to 25.1 per cent in the quarter, compared with 23.6 percent in the year earlier period, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. "We improved operational performance as a result of our cost optimization initiatives and a focus on increasing productivity and utilisation," Rajiv Bansal, chief financial officer, said in the statement. "This partially offset the impact of compensation increases for our employees." Sikka, 47, who was named last month to succeed S.D. Shibulal, spent 12 years at German business software supplier SAP and will be the first non-founder to head Infosys. The India-born California resident, who assumes charge on August 1, has his task cut out as Infosys seeks to retain its importance as companies move computing tasks to "cloud" programs, rather than writing the code themselves. More than a dozen executives have left Infosys since Murthy returned in June 2013 to help revive revenue growth. Murthy stepped down as executive chairman last month and will leave the company on October 10. Infosys, which designs and builds software programs, maintains computers and provides IT and outsourcing services for customers including the District of Columbia and Toyota Motor, added 61 clients last quarter. Worldwide information technology spending growth will slow to 4.1 per cent this year, compared with an earlier 4.6 per cent projection, researcher International Data Corp. said May 16. (c) 2014 Muscat Press and Publishing House SAOC Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |