New Delhi: Shares of IT major TCS fell nearly 2 per cent during morning trade on Thursday as its March quarter earnings failed to meet market expectations and the company flagged concerns from its key market of North America. . After a weak opening, the stock fell 1.88 per cent to Rs 3,181.10 on the BSE. It fell 1.87 per cent to Rs 3,181 on the NSE.
Other IT counters also showed a weak trend, with Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies and Wipro declining in morning trade. In the broader market, the 30-share BSE Sensex closed at 60,302.05, down 66.62 points or 0.11 per cent.
According to a report by HDFC Securities, “TCS delivered a soft quarter, driven by weakness in the North America geographies.” The country’s largest IT services exporter TCS on Wednesday reported a 14.8 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 11,392 crore for the March quarter but expressed concern over its key market of North America.
The Tata group company said events such as the collapse of SVB and fears of infection have affected consumer sentiment in North America, especially in the banking, financial services and insurance sectors, leading to consumer deferrals. Compared to the year-ago period, revenue rose 16.9 per cent to Rs 59,162 crore, with its outgoing CEO Rajesh Gopinathan admitting that the 0.6 per cent growth in revenue in the December quarter was “weaker than expected” because of shocks in North America. For FY23, the company reported 17.6 per cent growth in revenue at Rs 2.25 lakh crore, while profit after tax was up 10 per cent at Rs 42,147 crore. Brokerage firm Axis Securities said the results were below its expectations.