Indian Outsourcer's 3Q Revenue And Profits SoarIndian Outsourcer's 3Q Revenue And Profits Soar

Indian outsourcer Satyam Computer Services on Thursday reported that revenue for its third quarter ended Dec. 31 increased 22%, to $148 million from $121 million a year ago. Net income jumped 91% to $29 million, or 9 cents per share, from $15 million, or 5 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Company officials say strong growth in sales of IT services to businesses in the manufacturing, insurance, and health-care markets helped fuel the improvement; the outsourcing firm added 29 customers, including six multinational companies, during the quarter. As a result, Satyam raised its outlook for sales growth in fiscal 2004 from 26% to 28% to about 31%. Satyam also said it will add 600 seats to its Nipuna business-process-outsourcing subsidiary in the coming year.

Satyam is one of the largest Indian software and services firms, which, as a group, have seen strong sales growth recently as more U.S. companies seek to take advantage of relatively low labor rates in India. On Wednesday, Satyam competitor Wipro Ltd. reported a 44% increase in third-quarter revenue and a 21% jump in net income.