Wipro's management reiterated that it will grow in double digits for the full financial year. It anticipates growth to be in the range of 11.5-12 percent in constant currency terms for the full year.

This means that the company expects growth in the March quarter to be between a negative 0.6 percent to a positive 1 percent. The guidance is below consensus expectations of 0-2 percent. However, the upper end of the guidance in line with UBS' projection of 0-1 percent. BNP Paribas had projected Wipro to guide for 0.5-2.5 percent growth in the March quarter.

At 11.5-12 percent, Wipro's guidance for growth is below its peers. Infosys on Thursday hiked its full year guidance to 16-16.5 percent, while HCLTech anticipates their growth to be between 13.5-14 percent.

Wipro reported US Dollar revenue that was marginally below consensus expectations of $2,828 million. On a sequential basis, the company's revenue grew 0.2 percent.

Revenue was below consensus estimates in rupee terms as well. The figure of Rs 23,055.7 crore was less than a CNBC-TV18 poll of Rs 23,252 crore.

The bigger surprise came from the margin front as EBIT margin improved 120 basis points from the previous quarter to 16.3 percent from 15.1 percent. Consensus expected margin to rise only 15 basis points from September.

The management had mentioned previously that the EBIT margin will bottom at 15 percent. In fact, even during its previous earnings interaction with CNBC-TV18, the management had said that they do not anticipate a significant improvement in margin during the December quarter.

CFO Jatin Dalal attributed the improvement in margin to strong operational improvements and automation-led efficiencies. The margin also saw an expansion after absorbing investments made through salary increases, promotions and long-term incentives for the senior leadership.

Of course, despite the 120 basis points improvement, the margin figure is still below the company's post-Covid peak of 21.5 percent.

For the quarter, Wipro saw record total bookings of $4.3 billion in TCV terms, registering a growth of 26 percent year-on-year. The company closed 11 large deals during the quarter, resulting in a total contract value of $1 billion and growing 69 percent year-on-year.

The Total Contract Value for the quarter was higher than the average of the previous four quarters of $700 million.

Wipro's top five clients grew 15.7 percent, while top 10 clients grew 14.7 percent in constant currency terms compared to the previous year.

Voluntary attrition for the quarter moderated further by 180 basis points, coming in at 21.2 percent for the trailing 12 months for the quarter.

BFSI contributed to a third of the company's topline, followed by consumer and health divisions.

First Published:Jan 13, 2023 4:02 PM IST