Top Indian Companies: Infosys

Company profile

Established in 1981, Infosys is one of the leading provider of consulting, technology, outsourcing and next-generation digital services, enabling clients in more than 50 countries.

The company has over four decades of experience in managing the systems and workings of global enterprises and has more than 279k employees.

Established in 1981, Infosys is a NYSE listed global consulting and IT services company with more than 2,92,000 employees. From a capital of US$250, it has grown to become a US$ 15.64 billion (LTM Q3 FY22 revenues) company with a market capitalization of approximately US$ 106.44 billion.

On 24 August 2021, Infosys became the fourth Indian company to cross $100 billion in market capitalisation.

Infosys provides software development, maintenance and independent validation services to companies in finance, insurance, manufacturing and other domains.

One of its known products is Finacle which is a universal banking solution with various modules for retail and corporate banking.

Infosys is a Nifty 50 company with a weightage of 8.49% on the index.

Shareholding (%) Q4FY21

Promoter 13.0 0

Institutional Investors 55.8

Other Investors 21.2

General Public 10.1

Key products and services:

NIA – Next Generation Integrated AI Platform (formerly known as Mana)

Infosys Consulting – a global management consulting service

Cloud-based enterprise transformation services

Infosys Information Platform (IIP) – Analytics platform

EdgeVerve Systems which includes Finacle, a global banking platform

Panaya Cloud Suite

Skava- Now rebranded as Infosys Equinox

Engineering Services

Digital Marketing

Geographic Presence

Infosys has 82 sales and marketing offices and 123 development centres across the world as of 31 March 2018, with major presence in India, United States, China, Australia, Japan, Middle East and Europe.

In 2019, 60%, 24%, and 3% of its revenues were derived from projects in North America, Europe, and India, respectively. The remaining 13% of revenues were derived from the rest of the world.

Subsidiaries

Infosys BPM Limited

Infosys Consulting Holding AG

Infosys Public Services Inc.

Infosys Public Services Inc

Infosys Consulting Ltd

Infosys Technologies (Australia) Pty Limited

Infosys Technologies (China) Co. Limited

Infosys Technologies (Shanghai) Co. Limited

Infosys Technologies ( Sweden) AB

Infosys Technologies S. de R.L.de C.V.V

Panaya

Noah Consulting LLC

F23 Full Year and Q4 Results

Infosys reported lower-than-expected growth in the fourth quarter net profit and gave a weak 4-7 per cent revenue growth guidance for FY24 amid the tightening of IT budgets by clients following turmoil in the US banking sector.

Infosys' latest report card was a disappointment on several fronts - the company missed revenue guidance for FY23 hit by "unplanned project ramp downs and decision-making delays by some clients". With global macroeconomic uncertainties looming, it has given a subdued 4-7 per cent revenue growth forecast for FY24, with top management cautioning that "the environment remains uncertain".

Infosys had last given single-digit revenue guidance in FY2019.

India's second-biggest software services firm posted 7.8 per cent year-on-year growth in consolidated net profit at Rs 6,128 crore in the January-March quarter. But the profit fell 7 per cent when compared to the preceding October-December quarter.

The revenue growth in constant currency for FY23 came in at 15.4 per cent, lower than the guidance. Notably, during the Q3 earnings announcement in January this year, Infosys -- which competes in the market with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro and other IT firms -- had raised FY23 revenue guidance to 16-16.5 per cent (against the previously projected band of 15-16 per cent).

Infosys' Q4 year year-on-year-growth was 8.8 per cent and the sequential decline was 3.2 per cent in constant currency terms.

Revenue rose 16 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of FY23 to Rs 37,441 crore but represented a decline of 2.3 per cent when compared to December 2022 quarter.

Infosys expects to post revenue growth of between 4 per cent and 7 per cent for the current fiscal year ending March 2024, lower than analyst expectations.

The Bengaluru-based company sees FY24 operating margin in the range of 20-22 per cent.

The conservative guidance comes on the back of ongoing upheaval in the US banking system and an uncertain global economy.

On Wednesday, the country's largest IT services exporter TCS reported a 14.8 per cent increase in March quarter net profit at Rs 11,392 crore but flagged worries from its key market of North America.

Events like the fall of SVB and fears of contagion have impacted client sentiments in North America and the banking, financial services and insurance sector, in particular, leading to clients deferring spending, the Tata Group company had said.

Infosys results came below street estimates, and its CEO Salil Parekh Parekh attributed the Q4 show to a combination of unplanned project ramp-downs by some clients and delays in decision-making.

"In Q4, we saw changes in the market environment. We saw unplanned project ramp-downs in some of our clients, and delays in decision making which resulted in lower volumes. In addition, we had some one-time revenue impact," Parekh said during the earnings briefing.

"While we saw some signs of stabilisation in March the environment remains uncertain."

Parekh, however, asserted that Infosys' pipeline of large deals "is extremely strong".

"Several of them are mega deals, and several of them are opportunities, cost and efficiency programmes within clients, as well as consolidation opportunities," the Infosys top honcho said.

The board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 17.50 per equity share for the financial year ending March 31, 2023.

For the full year FY23, the net profit was up 9 per cent year-on-year at Rs 24,095 crore, while revenue was 20.7 per cent higher at Rs 146,767 crore.

"In Q4, we saw some ramp down which were unplanned across different sectors, we saw some in telco, some in high tech, and retail. And within financial services, it was in mortgages, asset management and investment banking...in those industries, we saw constraints. In addition to that, we saw a one-time impact in the quarter," Parekh explained.

Infosys' head count witnessed a net reduction of 3,611 employees in the March 2023 quarter as compared to the previous quarter, and the total workforce strength slipped to 3,43,234 as of March 31, 2023.

Infosys' voluntary attrition -- a metric keenly watched by analysts -- showed improvement, easing worries. The attrition rate stood at 20.9 per cent in Q4 FY23 against 24.3 per cent in Q3.

During the briefing, Parekh also fielded questions on senior-level exits in the company.

Infosys has seen two president-level exits in a matter of months, with Ravi Kumar and Mohit Joshi leaving the company to join top-tier IT firms Cognizant and Tech Mahindra, respectively.

Parekh said the company has announced and rolled out an internal structure focused on delivery, after Ravi Kumar's exit.

"We are in a position to now roll out a structure for financial services, as we move ahead. Within Infosys, we have a strong leadership team so leaders are coming from inside, and we see more and more at the next level...leaders within the company will step up," Parekh said.

Brokerage Outlook

Valuations – Reiterate Buy; TP raised to INR 2,260

Elara Capital says it maintain ‘Buy’ with a raised TP of INR 2,260 from INR 2,000, based on 30x FY24E EPS, and rolling forward our valuations to March 2024E from December 2023E. We factor in 16/17% USD revenue/EPS CAGR over FY21-24E (FY23E/24E implied revenue CQGR 3.1%), led by large deal momentum and market-share gains, strong global execution framework, robust tiers in partner ecosystem, and improved execution track record and balance sheet strength.

ESG

Infosys has put sustainability at the heart of its business approach and is the first company in India to certify its carbon neutrality against PAS 2060:2014.

Some of the steps taken by the company towards ESG include: 1. 102,000+ families benefit from community-based carbon offset projects of Infosys. 2. 38% of workforce comprises of women and 22% of the Board comprises of women 3. More than 2/3rd of board is independent.