IT stocks advance as Accenture raises full year revenue growth forecast

Nine IT shares rose by 0.46% to 2.22% at 10:22 IST after a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing giant Accenture raised its full year revenue growth forecast for the third time in a year.

HCL Technologies (up 2.22%), Infosys (up 1.68%), Hexaware Technologies (up 1.34%), Persistent Systems (up 1.33%), MindTree (up 1.13%), Wipro (up 1.04%), TCS (up 0.64%), Tech Mahindra (up 0.57%) and CMC (up 0.46%), edged higher. Oracle Financial Services Software (down 0.01%) and MphasiS (down 0.79%), edged lower.

The S&P BSE IT index was up 1.41% at 10,723.67. It outperformed the Sensex, which was down 0.36% at 27,794.15.

The S&P BSE IT index had underperformed the market over the past one month till 24 June 2015, sliding 3.59% compared with 0.81% fall in the Sensex. The index had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, falling 7.30% as against Sensex's 1.53% fall.

Accenture yesterday, 25 June 2015, raised its full-year revenue as well as earnings per share (EPS) forecast at the time of announcing its Q3 May 2015 results after trading hours in India yesterday, 25 June 2015.

Accenture reported net revenue of $7.8 billion for Q3 May 2015, an increase of 0.4% in US dollars and 10% in local currency over the same period last year. Net profit for the quarter was $850 million, compared with $882 million for the third quarter last year. Excluding the after-tax impact of the pension settlement charge, net profit for the third quarter of fiscal 2015 was $889 million.

Accenture expects net revenue to be in the range of $7.45 billion to $7.70 billion for Q4 August 2015. This range assumes a foreign-exchange impact of negative 10% compared with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. For fiscal 2015 (year ended 31 August 2015), the company now expects net revenue growth in local currency to be in the range of 9% to 10%, compared with 8% to 10% previously. Accenture's business outlook for the full 2015 fiscal year now assumes a foreign-exchange impact of negative 7.5% compared with fiscal 2014. The previous foreign-exchange assumption was negative 8%.

Accenture now expects diluted GAAP EPS to be in the range of $4.67 to $4.72 for the full 2015 fiscal year, including the pension settlement charge, compared with $4.61 to $4.71 previously. Excluding the pension settlement charge of $0.06 per share in the third quarter, the company now expects adjusted EPS to be in the range of $4.73 to $4.78, compared with $4.66 to $4.76 previously.

Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with more than 336,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News