EXL Q1 profit jumps 44.3% to $13.8 mn; ups annual guidance

Business process management firm ExlService Holdings today reported a 44.3 per cent jump in net profit to USD 13.8 million (around Rs 92 crore) for March quarter.
The Nasdaq-listed firm had recorded a net profit of USD 9.56 million in the first quarter ended March 31.
EXL's revenue grew 16.4 per cent to USD 167.03 million in the reported quarter as against USD 143.5 million in the year-ago period.
"EXL delivered strong revenue growth and profitability in the first quarter of 2016, driven by demand from our existing clients and ramp-up of recent wins," ExlService Holdings Vice Chairman and CEO Rohit Kapoor said.

Revenue grew 16.4 per cent year-over-year or 18.4 per cent on a constant currency basis, he added.
"Revenue growth was driven by analytics, healthcare, travel, transportation and logistics and banking and financial services in the quarter," he said.

For 2016, EXL has raised revenue guidance to USD 694-706 million from USD 690-706 million to reflect better performance in the first quarter and stronger exchange rates versus the US dollar.
This represents an annual revenue growth of 12-14 per cent on a constant currency basis.
The company reports its business under two segments -- Operations Management and Analytics.
Operations Management revenue increased 3.4 per cent to USD 128.1 million, while Analytics revenue grew 98.2 per cent to USD 39 million in the first quarter of 2016 from the year-ago period.

EXL won 11 new clients in the first quarter of 2016, consisting of eight clients in Operations Management and three clients in Analytics.
"Our Analytics business continues on its growth trajectory as clients increasingly rely on data-driven insights generated from our proprietary models... Our pipeline in both of our operating segments remains strong," he said.
EXL CFO Vishal Chhibbar said the company's balance sheet remains strong with cash and short-term investments of USD 192.9 million.