The second largest Indian exporter of IT services, Infosys, on Wednesday announced that it posted revenues of Rs.8,099 crore in the second quarter, reflecting a growth of 16.6 per cent on an annualised basis. The company made a net profit of Rs.1,906 crore during the quarter, an increase of 9.7 per cent over the previous year.
The company has declared an interim dividend of Rs. 15 per share.
Presenting the results, Infosys CEO and Managing Director S. D. Shibulal said the overhang of ‘macroeconomic' uncertainty in the U.S. and the turbulence caused by the debt crisis in the eurozone were significant imponderables for the industry in the remaining part of the fiscal. “Although there have been no project cancellations, we remain cautious in the uncertain environment,'' Mr. Shibulal said.
45 new clients
Infosys, Mr. Shibulal said, had achieved ‘good, all-round performance.' He said revenues from the Asia-Pacific region, especially Australia, had registered a healthy growth during the last quarter. The company added 45 new clients during the quarter, including 19 new ones, five of whom are in the Fortune 500 list.
Guidance for full year
The company's dollar-denominated guidance for the full year has been revised downward by a percentage point, mainly because it reflects the unfavourable movement of the currency. Revenues in 2011-12 were likely to between $7.08 billion and $7.20 billion, Mr. Shibulal said.
V. Balakrishnan, Chief Financial Officer, pointed out that the company had benefited from the sharp depreciation of the rupee during the quarter. “The current year has been abnormal in the sense that although clients have their budgets, they are withholding spending in the face of global uncertainties,'' he remarked. Unlike in ‘normal' years, in which the third and fourth quarters are generally sluggish, this year client spending was likely to be more ‘evenly spread,' he observed.
“The recast guidance is mainly because of the currency movements. It has not arisen from any change in the volume of business or because of pricing pressures,'' Mr. Balakrishnan said. He attributed the ‘marginal' dip in margins in the second quarter to the slowdown in growth. “If the U.S. goes into a double-dip, as some are predicting, we could face pricing pressures,'' he warned.
Asked if Infosys is considering the acquisition of Thomson Reuters health care business, which earned revenues of about $450 million in 2010, Mr. Shibulal said: “We have been dating but we are not close to an engagement yet.''
The company had a workforce of 1.42 lakh at the end of the quarter, including a net addition of 8,262 employees. The attrition rate was 15.6, compared to 17.1 a year ago.
