Geometric Software net rises by 119%

Geometric Software Solutions Company Ltd. has reported a 119 per cent increase in net profit for the third quarter ended December 31, 2001. Net profit for the quarter stood at Rs 3.55 crore against Rs 1.61 crore same period last year.

Net profit for the nine-month period ended December 2001 rose by 264.8 per cent to Rs 8.8 crore, as compared to Rs 2.4 crore for the year-ago period. Sales for the third quarter is up 42.7 per cent at Rs 16.08 crore, compared with Rs 11.27 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal.

On a consolidated basis, the company reported a 125 per cent increase in net profit at Rs 3.73 crore for the quarter ended December 2001, up from Rs 1.65 crore in the corresponding period last year.

Net profit for the nine-month period ended December 2001 rose 214 per cent to Rs 9.07 crore, as compared to Rs 2.89 crore for the year-ago period.

Sales for the third quarter is up 57 per cent at Rs 179.97 crore, compared with Rs 114.50 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal.

Geometric recorded a 20.5 per cent sequential growth in net profit at Rs 3.73 crore for the quarter ended December 2001, as against a net profit of Rs 3.10 crore for the preceding quarter ended September 2001.

"The results reflect the continued success of Geometric’s strategy of moving from being a niche player to a specialist in the fast-growing Product Lifecycle Management space," Manu Parpia, managing director of the company, said.

As part of its strategy to diversify, the company formed two additional business units, namely Information Management and Collaborative Engineering in October 2000. The two new business units have shown a steady growth, contributing 36 per cent to sales in the quarter ended December 2001.

The company has managed to improve its topline growth which was under pressure in the previous quarter. Sequential (quarter-on-quarter) growth stands at 8.6 per cent for the quarter December 2001, while it was at 5.4 per cent in the quarter ended September 2001. Operating profit has grown by 11 per cent quarter-on-quarter (q-on-q) to Rs 4.75 crore.

Project revenues were at 86.77 per cent of total revenues to Rs 15.62 crore. Revenue from products was at Rs 2.38 crore, up from Rs 2.21 crore in the previous quarter. The company`s operating profit margins went up to 28 per cent and net margins went up to 21 per cent.

Significant developments during the third quarter were the appointment of Nitin Deshpande as chief operating officer and a strategic alliance with Wipro to provide end-to-end IT solutions to industrial markets in the US, Europe and Japan. The company continued to expand its relationship with Powerway Inc, in which it had made a strategic investment of $400,000 in July 2001.

The company has been able to sustain its billing rates and has continued with its recruitment plans, adding 37 software developers in the quarter ended December 2001. In anticipation of a potential manpower increase in the coming months, the company has strengthened its recruitment team.