NIIT shares down 7%, results disappoint

NEW DELHI: Shares of Indian computer education and software services firm

NIIT Ltd. fell in morning trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange after the firm’s

performance for the third quarter ended June 30 failed to meet expectations,

analysts said.

At 11.00 a.m. (0535 GMT), the firm's shares were down 6.97 per cent at Rs

1,995. At that time, the 30-share Bombay index was up 3.86 points at 4,884.66.

NIIT's shares have fallen 48 per cent from their peak of Rs 3,800 on January

4. The company’s net profit rose 28 per cent to Rs 780.2 million in the

quarter ended June 30, from Rs 609.8 million a year earlier.

It fell short of the forecasts made by analysts of around Rs 808-900 million,

a rise of 33-48 per cent. "The growth in NIIT's software development

segment is below expectations," said an analyst at a foreign investment

firm.

Dealers said NIIT's earnings growth over the years was relatively slow

compared to the other big firms in India's fancied software sector.

Sector leader Infosys Technologies Ltd. and the heavily traded Satyam

Computer Services Ltd. unveiled on Tuesday net profit growth of 100 per cent and

95 per cent, respectively, in their first quarter ended June 30.

NIIT's net sales for the three months rose 34 per cent to Rs 2.02 billion,

compared to Rs 1.51 billion in the year-ago period.

For the nine months ended June 30, the company reported a net profit of Rs

1.33 billion on net sales of Rs 5.35 billion. The firm's accounting year runs

from October to September.

(C) Reuters Limited 2000.