Born-again (now) Mahindra Satyam (MSat) seems to be moving in the right direction, at least in Rupee terms. Headline revenues for Q3 (to 31st Dec. 2011) rose by 34% yoy to Rs17.2b, 9% higher qoq. However, when translated to USD, revenues actually declined 2% qoq to $325m. Operating margins were over a point higher than the prior quarter, at 13.9%, but we have to assume that the c.10% depreciation of the Rupee over the quarter more than accounted for the improvement. CEO CP Gurnani reflected on MSat’s ‘healthy progress’ in operational efficiencies, though that doesn’t appear obvious from the few numbers they now disclose.
Meanwhile, it’s now just over three years since the Raju scandal broke (see here), and MSat is still dealing with the consequences, both in terms of the Indian authorities and with disgruntled investors. These must be really unhelpful distractions for MSat management in these difficult times, but there seems to be no sign that they will be resolved any time soon.