Mahindra Satyam nosedives 14% to 17-month low

Mahindra Satyam tanked by nearly 14 per cent to its lowest level in almost 17 months in early trade on the BSE today, with investors reacting negatively to the software firm's disappointing second quarter results.

The company, formerly known as Satyam Computer, yesterday reported a consolidated profit of Rs 23.30 crore for the July-September quarter of this fiscal, down from Rs 97.5 crore in the previous quarter as wage hikes squeezed margins.

Reacting to the quarterly results, shares of Mahindra Satyam tumbled by 13.98 per cent to a seventeen-month low of Rs 72.60 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The last time the scrip was seen near this level was in June 9, 2009, when Mahindra Satyam shares were being quoted at Rs 66.85 apiece.

Similarly, the scrip plunged by 14.18 per cent to an Rs 72.30 on the National Stock Exchange.

Meanwhile, the BSE's 30-share benchmark Sensex index was down by 271.12 points from its previous close at 20,282.57 in early trade today.

In September this year, the company announced its results for the first time since Satyam Founder Chairman B Ramalinga Raju confessed in January, 2009, to having cooked the IT firm's account books to the tune of crores of rupees for years.

After the lid was blown off the scam, the company was acquired by Tech Mahindra, which rebranded it as Mahindra Satyam. The new promoters had sought time to declare the company's audited results until they could assess the extent of Raju's fraud.