Infosys Technologies’ net profit rises by 24% in third quarter

Bangalore: Infosys Technologies has reported a year-on-year growth of 24.4 per cent in its net profits at Rs 256.31 crore for the third quarter ended 31 December 2002 (Rs 206 crore in the previous corresponding eriod) over a total income of Rs 958.64 crore (Rs 661 crore), up by 45.1 per cent (Rs 661 crore).

Sequentially, the net profits grew by 13.53 per cent while its income increased by 9 per cent. The company raised its projections for fiscal 2003, expecting an income between Rs 3,578 crore and Rs 3,592 crore.

Earnings per share are expected to be between Rs 144.70 and Rs 145. For the fourth quarter, Infosys expects its income to be in the range of Rs 975 crore to Rs 989 crore. The company added 23 new clients during the quarter; prominent ones being AT&T Wireless, TTPCom, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Compass Bank.

“Infosys continues to enjoy the confidence of large marquee clients,” says Infosys CEO, president and managing director Nandan Nilekani. “Global corporations are seeking robust, financially strong, world-class partners such as Infosys to outsource their IT requirements.”

Nilekani says the software revenue in dollar terms grew sequentially by 9.6 per cent for the quarter while the revenue growth comprised a volume growth of 10.5 per cent offset by a price decline of 0.9 per cent. “This is for the third consecutive quarter in which we had double-digit volume growth. Volume growth will be the primary driver of revenue growth in the future.”

Gross employee addition during the third quarter was 1,133, swelling the overall headcount to 14,058. “Infosys has been able to demonstrate the scalability of its operations by adding 948 net employees without compromising on operational excellence,” says Infosys COO and deputy managing director S Gopalakrishnan.