Thursday, February 06, 2003
By 13:30 IST, Hughes Software jumped up by 4.25% to Rs 158.35.
It came off its intra-day high of Rs 161.90 in the mean time.
High volumes of over 11.80 lakh were registered on the counter.
Hughes Software (HSSL) has witnessed mixed trends in the
last few sessions. In two sessions between 3 and 5 February
2003, the scrip lost 7% to Rs 151.90 from Rs 163.40 following
profit booking after a huge rise. In the prior five sessions
between 27 January and 3 February 2003, the scrip rose 26.5%
from Rs 129.15.
Considerable institutional buying is taking place on the
counter. Market buzz has it that Prudential ICICI is actively
buying .
There's talk that the company is at an advanced stage of
bagging an order from Lucent Technologies for an outsourcing
contract, likely to generate revenues of about $10 million
for Hughes over three years.
Earlier HSSL registered its third quarter ended 31 December
2002 results - a 21.3% fall in net profit to Rs 11.40 crore
(Rs 14.50 crore). Its total income declined by 6.2% to Rs
59 crore (Rs 62.90 crore).
At the time of announcing Q3 results, Hughes Software's management
said the company's sales may record a 10% sequential growth
in Q4 ending 31 March 2003 from Q3 ended December 2002, but
the next four quarters will continue to be difficult for the
telecom sector.
The company, which derives revenues from the telecom domain,
has been feeling the pinch of the sluggishness in the telecom
sector globally. While the management gave a guidance of 10%
sequential growth in revenues for the fourth quarter, it did
not give guidance on profitability.
In order to de-risk its business and create added opportunities,
HSSL has decided to enter into the business process outsourcing
(BPO) segment. This will be started as an independent operation.
HSSL is also diversifying its revenue streams and is working
currently for a foray into the banking,
financial services, insurance (BFSI) segment.
Hughes Software is a subsidiary of HNS, formerly a unit of
Hughes Electronics Corporation (HE). HNS is a networking company,
dedicated to providing products and services to build and
operate digital communication networks worldwide. HNS is the
world leader in VSAT-based networks. HE is a
world leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of advanced
electronic systems. It was a wholly-owned subsidiary of General
Motors Corporation, US. HNS-India Inc. is the principal shareholder
in Hughes Software. The current promoter holding in Hughes
Software is 55.57%, the
same as on 30 September 2002.
Last updated : February 2, 2004
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