The Hindu Business Line : Aztecsoft Q4 net profit declines 53%

Bangalore, April 16 Software engineering services provider Aztecsoft Ltd reported a 53.3 per cent decline in net profit in the fourth quarter for financial year 2008, but said revenue increased 10.4 per cent.

The company said for the latest quarter, net profit was Rs 3.15 crore, compared with Rs 6.75 crore in the year-ago quarter. Revenue increased to Rs 68.71 crore.

Forex charge

Mr Samir Bodas, Chief Executive, Aztecsoft, told Business Line the drop in net profit was due to a one-time non-cash charge of Rs 4.22 crore related to foreign exchange. Net profit for the fourth quarter rose 43.8 per cent sequentially.

In the third quarter, the company reported an 80.4 per cent drop in net profit, largely due to the appreciating rupee.

Shares of the company rose 8.83 per cent to Rs 72.10, after touching an intra-day high of Rs 78.95 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. It closed at Rs 66.25 onTuesday.

Mr Bodas said 17 per cent of the revenue growth in the latest quarter came from higher pricing and the remaining came from higher volumes.

The company does not see billing pressure from new or existing clients, he added.

Margins up

Aztecsoft said gross profit margins increased about 5 per cent to 30.52 per cent helped by higher pricing, better revenue mix, higher utilisation, rupee depreciation and tighter control on operations and expenses.

The company said for fiscal 2008, net profit was Rs 17.38 crore on revenue of Rs 253.10 crore.

For fiscal 2009, Aztecsoft sees a year-on-year revenue growth of 25 to 28 per cent, Mr Bodas said.

In the fourth quarter, the company added 7 new clients, and the total number of clients at present is 84, the company said.

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