NIIT Tech net rises 44.7%

Reports one of the strongest sequential growths in several quarters

Riding on the back of a very favourable currency and one of the strongest sequential growths in several quarters, mid-tier information technology firm NIIT Technologies reported a 44.7 per cent jump in net profit at Rs 62.4 crore for the three months ended September, compared to the same period last year. The company’s revenues also shot up by 17.4 per cent during the period to Rs 587.3 crore compared to the year-ago period.

On a sequential basis, the firm’s revenues were up 8.4 per cent and net profit increased by 17.2 per cent.

The robust set of numbers and the company’s upbeat commentary furthered the belief that the fortunes of India’s information technology exports sector are looking up with the recovery in the key market, the US.

The demand environment is clearly showing positive signs in the US with the debt issue being the only overhang, said NIIT’s Technologies CEO Arvind Thakur.

“Business from all our clients is showing growth,” he added.

Rajendra S Pawar, chairman of NIIT Technologies, added that the positively in the environment looks sustainable as there are “firm underpinning” to it. “Pent up demand is also driving the spend which looks more consistent now.”

The company’s profit after tax was significantly buoyed by a Rs 15.5-crore gain, thanks to a favourable currency against a foreign exchange loss in the corresponding quarter. The company said in a statement that it added three new clients during the quarter and secured fresh orders of $84 million, leading to $248 million worth of orders executable over the next 12 months.

NIIT also recently hired former Infosys executive Sudhir Chaturvedi as its chief executive officer based out of the UK. Chaturvedi will handle the global sales and delivery for software and business services for NIIT.

Last week, Infosys Ltd announced better-than-expected numbers and raised the lower end of its FY14 revenue guidance, indicating the company had regained its momentum along with an uptick in the demand situation.

Meanwhile, the country’s largest IT firm, Tata Consultancy Services, continued its strong show and increased its net profit by 33.9 per cent at Rs 4,702 crore, compared with the corresponding quarter last year. Its revenues backed by strong deals wins and broad-based growth went up 34.3 per cent to Rs 20,977.24 crore on an year-on-year basis, the company said on Tuesday.