Infosys Q2 net up 28.6%; cheers shareholders with bonus issue

Infosys today reported better- than-expected profit growth of 28.6 per cent for the second quarter and cheered investors by announcing bonus shares - the third time since it went public over two decades ago.
The free shares and a higher Rs 30 per share dividend has been announced two months into the tenure of Vishal Sikka, the first outsider and non-founder to head the country's second largest IT services firm.
Consolidated net profit for the city-based firm rose to Rs 3,096 crore in the July-September quarter, 2014-15, from Rs 2,407 crore in the year-ago period.
Helped by higher sales in North America and Europe, the company's Q2 revenue was up 2.9 per cent to Rs 13,342 crore.

Infosys maintained its forecast for the full-year sales growth at 7-9 per cent in US dollar terms.
Buoyed by a strong set of numbers, the company declared an interim dividend of Rs 30 per equity share as compared to Rs 20 in the previous year.

It has also recommended a bonus issue of one equity share for every equity share held and a bonus issue of a stock dividend of one American Depositary Share (ADS) for every ADS held, respectively.
"Digital transformation is reshaping the business of every one of our clients. We see this as a great opportunity to help them renew the core of their business as well as to expand into new frontiers and are seeing early positive results," Infosys CEO and Managing Director Vishal Sikka said.

He added that the company's strategy is to apply the same principles to its own business in order to capture this opportunity and accelerate growth.
"We have been able to improve our margins during the quarter and feel confident of sustaining these within a narrow band," Infosys CFO Rajiv Bansal said. "This is giving us increased confidence to make the investments required to meet our growth aspirations.