Tata Consultancy Services on Thursday reported a 5.1 per cent increase in net profit to Rs 5,441 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2014 compared to Rs 5,197 crore in the corresponding period last year. The company also announced a dividend of Rs 5 per share.

Commenting on the Q3 performance, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, N Chandrasekaran said:” We have maintained our momentum in a traditionally weak quarter for the IT industry. In constant currency terms, we have seen significant growth in USA, Europe as well as emerging markets like Latin America and Middle-East Africa. Our diversified industry portfolio and presence across key markets have helped us overcome soft seasonal demand in some sectors.”

“Based on our progress this quarter, we are well on our way to post industry-leading growth for FY15. In areas like Digital, Simplification and Governance, we continue to partner closely with customers to help them prepare their businesses to succeed in an economy where the default is digital,” he added

The company added one $100 million plus client, three $50 million plus clients and twenty $5 million plus clients.

Rajesh Gopinathan, Chief Financial Officer, said: “Sharp cross currency movements have impacted dollar revenues, but we continue to manage operations with discipline and rigour while investing in people, capabilities and infrastructure on an ongoing basis.

Growth in Q3 was driven by industries like Telecom, Hi Tech and Life Sciences. Europe led growth, driven by the investments made in that market, while North America also grew during the quarter. Among emerging markets, Latin America and MEA registered strong growth. Among service lines, Global Consulting, Asset Leveraged Solutions, Infrastructure Services and Assurance Services were the leaders.

The company continued to hire to support business growth. There was a total gross addition of 16,561 people (net addition of 4,868 employees) taking the total employee strength to 318,625 employees on a consolidated basis. The attrition rate (LTM) was at 13.4 %.

“Our effort to push the bar on utilisation continues with the rate crossing 86% without trainees and 82% with trainees. Our hiring continues to support strong business growth, we are likely to exceed our hiring target for the current financial year,” said Ajoy Mukherjee, Executive vice president and Global Head, Human Resources.

Dipen Shah, Head- Private Client Group Research, Kotak Securities: "The results have not provided any positive surprise. The in-line results for Q3 reflect the impact of seasonality as well as softness in a few verticals like Insurance and Energy/Utilities. While short term demand is weak, TCS has not seen any cancellations or deferrals of projects. Spends in Digital are also growing in line with expectations. We believe that, US economic growth and increasing outsourcing from Europe should support future growth."

Financial Highlights for Quarter Ended December 31, 2014

* Operating Profit at Rs 6,624 crore; Growth of 4.6 % Y-o-Y and 3.6 % Q-o-Q

* Operating Margin at 27 %

* Dividend per share of Rs 5

* Earnings Per Share at Rs 27.79

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