Maybe it’s just that the ill winds of the global economy are blowing only in Bangalore! Wipro, the (now) 4th largest India-centric offshore IT/BP services firm, echoed archrival Infosys’ gloomy outlook for the sector (see Infosys misses Q4 revenue target) in apparent contrast to Mumbai-based TCS (see TCS makes it to $10b – but 2 years late) and Chennai-based HCL (see HCL and MindTree return some cheer to Indian sector).
But at least Wipro made the numbers – unlike Infosys – with Q4 IT/BP services revenues (to 31st March) reaching $1.54b, 9.7% higher yoy and 2.0% higher qoq. That brings Wipro’s FY total to $5.92b (+13% yoy), trailing Infosys by 15% and TCS by 42%. Operating margins for the quarter were 20.7%, basically flat qoq. But the common theme with Infosys was the outlook for the current quarter (to 30th June), with both players expecting essentially no sequential revenue growth. Wipro management do not ‘guide’ on FY revenues, but if they are looking at the market through the same lenses as Infosys, then one assumes they only see high single-digit headline growth.
I’ll be adding much more ‘colour and movement’ on the Indian offshore services scene in OffshoreViews. Meanwhile, we await the quarter’s results from Cognizant, the (now) third largest India-centric offshore services player, due early May. Cognizant marches to the beat of an altogether different drummer to its peers, having previously forecast 23% revenue growth in 2012 (see Cognizant makes it by a whisker as Europe wobbles). Must be something to do with the bracing air in Teaneck, New Jersey!