Date:15/04/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/04/15/stories/2006041503991500.htm

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Business

Infosys net up 33 p.c.

Special Correspondent

Showers rewards on shareholders to mark 25 years

Fourth quarter profit up 31 p.c.
Staff strength crosses 50,000-mark

Revenue to grow at 36 p.c. in current Q1

— Photo: G. R. N. Somashekar

ON GROWTH PATH: N. R. Narayana Murthy, Chief Mentor (middle), Infosys Technologies, flanked by Nanadan Nilekani, CEO (right), and Gopalakrishnan, COO, at a press conference in Bangalore on Friday. Others in the picture are: Mohandas Pai, CFO (right), and Shibu Lal, Head Global Sales and Delivery.

BANGALORE: India's second largest software exporter Infosys Technologies Limited has recorded a 33.2 per cent year-on-year growth in net profit at Rs. 2,458 crore for the fiscal ended March 31, 2006 as revenues climbed up by 33.5 per cent to Rs. 9,521 crore on the strength of a continued boom in outsourcing from western countries.

Final dividend

To mark a quarter century in business, the board of directors of the company has recommended a bonus issue of an additional share for every share held to all the share holders including the ADR/ADS holders. The company that was launched in 1981 by a small group of seven software professionals with each contributing a small amount as seed capital said its board has also recommended a silver jubilee special dividend of Rs. 30 per share, involving an outgo of Rs. 827 crore. Besides, Infosys announced a final dividend of Rs. 8.50 per share, amounting to Rs. 234 crore. It had earlier announced an interim dividend of Rs. 6.50 per share.

The company's net profit for the fourth quarter (January-March 2006) jumped by 31.2 per cent to Rs. 673 crore from Rs. 558.64 crore a year earlier. Revenues shot up by 32.1 per cent to Rs. 2,624 crore from Rs. 1,987.32 crore a year ago.

During the year, Infosys crossed the $2-billion-mark in revenues, in less than two years after it had touched the $1-billion milestone in March 2004.

It also crossed the 50,000 mark in staff strength during the year with Infosys and subsidiaries employing 52,715 employees on March 31.

"This has been a happy, intense, rewarding and exhilarating journey of 25 years,'' N. R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman and Chief Mentor, Infosys, told reporters here on Friday.

Based on continued boom in outsourcing, the company has forecast a revenue growth of 28.7 to 30.7 per cent in rupee terms (Rs. 12,254 crore to Rs. 12,446 crore) and 28 to 30 per cent in dollar terms ($2.76 billion to $2.80 billion) for the current fiscal.

Investment in 2006-07

The revenue growth in the first quarter of the current fiscal is expected to be in the range of 34.8 to 35.9 per cent in rupee terms.

During 2006-07, Infosys is expected to invest Rs. 1,600-1,800 crore mainly in building technology infrastructure and said it would hire 25,000 people.

Infosys announced that T. V. Mohandas Pai, Member of the Board and Chief Financial Officer (CFO), will be relinquishing his post as CFO from April 30. It has elevated V. Balakrishnan, now Vice President (Finance) and Company Secretary, as CFO who will report to CEO Nandan M. Nilekani. Mr. Pai will continue to be a Member of the Board and would be responsible for human resources development, education and research and administration.

Infosys has also inducted Prof. Jeffrey Sean Lehman as an additional director of the company with immediate effect.

"The global IT services industry is showing signs of stronger growth and Infosys is well poised to take advantage,'' Mr. Nilekani said.