Nifty IT index hits 52-week high; TCS nears record high

Shares of information technology (IT) companies were in focus with the Nifty IT index hitting 52-week high, while the sector giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) trading close to its record high on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

At 10:13 am, Nifty IT index, the largest gainer among sectoral indices, was up 2% at 11,143, as compared to 0.16% decline in the benchmark Nifty 50 index. IT index hit an intra-day high of 11,159, its highest level since August 12, 2016.

TCS, too, hit 52-week high of Rs 2,768, up 4% on the NSE in intra-day trade. The stock is 2.4% away from its all-time high of Rs 2,834 touched on October 7, 2014 in intra-day trade.

HCL Technologies, Infosys, Wipro and Tech Mahindra were up in the range of 1% to 3%, in otherwise subdued market.

TCS, in past one-month, has outperformed the market by gaining 13% after the company posted above expectation results on the EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) and net profit fronts. On comparison, the Nifty 50 index was up 6% during the same period.

NASSCOM maintained its FY18 India offshore growth estimate of 7-8%, despite relatively slower trends at various large cap firms in the industry.

NASSCOM also expects India based BPM (business process management) industry to grow at a 7-8% CAGR (compound annual growth rate) through 2025 to $50-55B, driven by solid adoption digital technologies in BPM delivery, The industry body believes BPO firms will increasingly require incoming employees skilled in technology, and partner with Indian colleges/schools to fill the skill gap, JP Morgan said in recent report.

The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) is a trade association of Indian Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry.

In separate report, JP Morgan said it hopes for better growth in CY18 rest on the “industrialization of digital” theme. 

“Digital contracts are getting larger and more expansive as clients get increasingly more confident and sure-footed about the digital landscape. For digital programs to have full utility, they must be integrated into the core with newer technologies and value-add. This is where India IT majors led by TCS have the edge, we believe”, it added.

But we are not sure the “industrialization of digital” theme will be potent enough in the near term to overcome the drag from the legacy business, the foreign brokerage firm said.

COMPANY	LATEST	ONE-MONTH BEFORE	GAIN(%)
8K MILES	854.50	509.55	67.70
INFIBEAM INCORP.	186.20	126.40	47.31
POLARIS CONSULTA	287.10	228.30	25.76
SONATA SOFTWARE	184.50	151.20	22.02
HEXAWARE TECH.	320.25	265.20	20.76
KPIT TECH.	152.80	127.80	19.56
ROLTA INDIA	61.30	52.85	15.99
MPHASIS	699.30	613.00	14.08
VAKRANGEE	551.30	486.00	13.44
ZENSAR TECH.	841.25	750.20	12.14
NIIT TECH.	629.15	565.25	11.30
TCS	2716.00	2445.15	11.08
INTELLECT DESIGN	144.10	130.25	10.63
WIPRO	303.15	286.25	5.90
CYIENT	533.00	508.95	4.73
L & T INFOTECH	827.00	796.45	3.84
INFOSYS	947.00	919.45	3.00