The IT giant reported a consolidated bottom-line of Rs 4,076 crore in the October-December period, compared to Rs 4,235 crore in the preceding quarter, according to an exchange filing on Monday. Analysts’ consensus estimate compiled by Bloomberg projected the profit to grow by 11% to Rs 4,702 crore.
HCLTech Q3 Results (Consolidated, QoQ)
- Revenue up 6% at Rs 33,872 crore versus Rs 31,942 crore (Estimate of Rs 33,201 crore).
- Net profit down 3.8% at Rs 4,076 crore versus Rs 4,235 crore (Estimate of Rs 4,702 crore).
- EBIT up 14.2% at Rs 6,285 crore versus Rs 5,502 crore (Estimate of Rs 6,054 crore).
- EBIT margin at 18.6% versus 17.2% (Estimate of 18.2%).
- The operating margin included a 81 basis points impact of restructuring cost.
The New Labour Codes resulted in an estimated one time increase in provision for employee benefits of Rs 956 crore, the statement said.
HCTech’s advanced artificial intelligence revenue rose nearly 20% q-o-q to $146 million in constant currency terms.
The order book swelled by 17% sequentially and 43% annually to $3 billion in the third quarter.
HCLSoftware business grew the most, up 28.1%, while IT segment rose 1.5% on QoQ CC terms.
The attrition rate was at 12.4%, down from 12.6% in the previous quarter amd 13.2% in Q3 of last year.
HCLTech narrowed year-on-year revenue growth guidance to 4%-4.5% in constant currency terms for the full year, from 3%-5% earlier.
Services revenue growth has been upgraded to be between 4.75%-5.25% (vs 4%-5%). EBIT margin has been maintained between 17%-18%, excluding the one-time impact of new labour codes.
The board has declared an Interim Dividend of Rs 12 per equity share. The record date for the payment of the dividend is Jan. 16, and the payment date will be done on Jan. 27.
Shares of HCLTech settled 0.35% higher at Rs 1668.1 on the BSE, ahead of the earnings, compared to a 0.36% advance in the benchmark Sensex. The stock is down 16% on a 12-month basis.