i-flex took the plunge in morning trades, no sooner its results, that showed a 9.5% drop in net profit, hit the market. 

By 11:10 IST, the stock of the software solutions major slumped 5.34% to Rs 838.05. It had seen an early high of Rs 908 today. Over 3.4 lakh i-flex Solutions shares changed hands on BSE by 10:45 IST.

In contrast, the scrip has been buoyant all through the 11 months since its listing on 28 June 2003,  having risen over 65% from Rs 549.

For Q4 ended 31 March 2003, the company recorded a 9.5% drop in net profit to Rs 32.84 crore (Rs 35.86 crore) on a 20% increase in revenues to Rs 145.03 crore (Rs 121 crore). For FY 2002-03, the company registered a 37.55% rise in net profit to Rs 174.37 crore (Rs 126.76 crore) on a 36% increase in revenues to Rs 563.83 crore (Rs 415.02 crore). The board of directors has also recommended a dividend of 50% (ie Rs 2.50 per share on a face value of Rs 5 per share).

On a consolidated basis, for Q4, the company posted a net profit of Rs 38.34 crore on a revenue of Rs 161.95 crore. For the full year, net profit was at Rs 170.08 crore (Rs 115.29 crore) on revenues of Rs 609.85 crore (Rs 419.47 crore).

For Q4, as per US GAAP, the company recorded a net profit of Rs 33.05 crore on a revenue of Rs 163.05 crore.

Capitalmarket.com had predicted a brighter outcome for the company - a net profit of Rs 41-53 crore for the quarter ended 31 March 2003. Revenues, though, were in line with expectations of Rs 160-172 crore.

For the full year, as per US GAAP, the company reported a net profit of Rs 177.06 crore on revenues of Rs 635.73 crore.

i-flex,  a leading provider of technology solutions to the financial services sector, derives over 60% of its revenues from high margin products. Its range of solutions includes packaged applications for the financial services industry, custom application software development, deployment, maintenance and support services for financial institutions and business and IT consulting services in the financial services domain.

As on 31 March 2003, the promoters' holding in i-flex was at 43.19%, while the public and institutions held 40.41% and 7.74%, respectively.

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