NEW DELHI, March 30: Expectations of yet another sterling performance from Infosys Technologies has driven its stock to a new high. Ahead of its board meeting on April 10, the company's scrip has been on the rise and has generated large volumes.The market expects at least 60-65 per cent growth in net profit on the back of a similar growth in turnover. The market is speculating a net profit in the region of Rs 52-58 crore (Rs 35.92 crore) on a turnover of Rs 220-230 crore (Rs 143.81 crore) from the Bangalore-based software company. Led by demand for software services and the rupee depreciation, a few analysts see the company's net profit touching Rs 60 crore. Rising exports and a falling rupee augur well for Infosys, said an FII dealer. Moving against the wave, the company's scrip on Monday touched a new high (since the scrip went ex-bonus last August) of Rs 1,805 and witnessed wild fluctuations before closing the day at Rs 1,740 on the BSE. On the National Stock Exchange, the scrip zoomed to Rs 1,792.75before closing the day at Rs 1,735 with over 70,000 shares changing hands.
Infosys' scrip has zoomed from Rs 1,050 in early February to the current level of Rs 1,800 on BSE. In the last three trading sessions, the scrip has shot up from Rs 1,601 to Rs 1,740 on BSE. Trading volumes too have spurted from an average daily volume of 3,000-5,000 shares to over 25,000 shares. The scrip has witnessed trading volumes of 44,000 and 82,000 shares in the last two trading sessions on the BSE.
After a 105 per cent growth in its third quarter profits at Rs 18.24 crore, market expects a total growth of over 60 per cent for the full year. Infosys' total income for third quarter ended December, 1997, stood at Rs 73.36 crore, a growth of 93 per cent. Revenue growth in case of Infosys continues to be driven by the worldwide demand for software services. The company's export revenue for the third quarter increased to Rs 71.05 crore (Rs 34.14 crore), reflecting a stupendous growth of 108 per cent while domestic operationsshowed a marginal drop to Rs 1.98 crore against Rs 2.43 crore for the third quarter in 1996.
For the first six months ended September 1997, the company reported a 63 per cent jump in net profit to Rs 23.03 crore, up from Rs 14.11 crore. Net revenue improved by 75 per cent to Rs 107.69 crore and export revenue was around Rs 103 crore.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
