HGS REPORTS 45.8% GROWTH IN CONSOLIDATED OPERATING EBIDTA FOR FY2024

Mumbai : Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS or the Company) (listed on BSE & NSE) today announced its fourth quarter and audited full-year results for FY2024.

Speaking on the results, Partha DeSarkar, Whole-time Director and Group CEO of HGS said: “HGS ended the year with a solid performance in Q4 FY2024 across both our BPM and media divisions. On YoY basis, HGS’ operating EBITDA has increased by 82.5% while operating EBITDA margins expanded by 260 basis points to 6.0%. The recently acquired entities TekLink and Diversify have done very well. HGS also signed 11 new CX clients in Q4, taking the fiscal count to 41, showcasing strong demand for our technology-led CX services.

 

The highlight of the full-year performance has been our operating EBITDA growing by 45.8% YoY and our Operating EBITDA expanding by 230 basis points to 7.7%. In March 2024, we incorporated a subsidiary in South Africa to service clients from the UK, US and Australia, and expect to start operations in July 2024.

 

In the BPM business, we continue to focus aggressively on customizing horizontal services such as AI, automation and cloud etc., to develop industry-specific solutions and drive more value in the key verticals we support. An important part of this approach has been to engage with partners such as Cranium and Form1 Partners to cross-leverage our capabilities for the market.

 

FY2024 was the first full year since the merger with NXTDIGITAL. We are pleased with how the synergies between the two businesses are panning out – including collaborating to develop the NetX application under the recently-launched B2B brand CelerityX and co-working on automating various processes to enhance productivity and speed. We are excited about creating more collaborative opportunities between the two entities going ahead.”

 

Commenting on the Digital Media division’s performance, Vynsley Fernandes, Whole-time Director of HGS and Head of the Digital Media business said, “Our focus in FY2024 was to build on our strong pan-India digital distribution expertise and technology innovation – by driving our retail, commercial and enterprise broadband ventures. Those initiatives, setting the foundation for future growth, are seeing traction. Whilst CelerityX, our enterprise business, continues to make gains on the back of the recently launched OneX unified network-as-a-service solution, our OIL retail broadband customer base has surged by more than 23% over the previous fiscal. That focus on digital inclusion is also reflected in our corporate actions over the last few months – first acquiring a majority stake in leading Mumbai-based ISP Seven Star Broadband and then signing on Triple Play Broadband, a Delhi-based premier ISP as an alliance partner.”

Financial Highlights for Q4 FY2024

HGS consolidated (including BPM and Digital Media businesses) ·         Total income stood at Rs. 1,257.9 crore, a YoY growth of 7.7%. ·         Revenue from operations stood at Rs. 1,098.7 crore, a YoY growth of 2.7%. ·         Operating EBITDA was Rs. 66.2 crore, up 82.5% YoY; EBITDA margins for the quarter were 6.0%. ·         PAT stood at Rs. 87.9 crore. ·         As on March 31, 2024, Net Cash and Treasury Surplus stood at Rs. 5,012.6 crore.

 

Financial Highlights for Full-Year FY2024

HGS consolidated (including BPM and Digital Media businesses) ·         Total income stood at Rs. 5,087.8 crore, a YoY growth of 1.6%. ·         Revenue from operations stood at Rs. 4,615.7 crore, a YoY growth of 2.5%. ·         Operating EBITDA was Rs. 355.9 crore, a 45.8% growth YoY; EBITDA margins were 7.7%. ·         PAT stood at Rs. 131.2 crore. ·         Total dividend for the year is Rs. 7 per share.

• Cli
• Client wins in Q4 FY2024:

–          Added 11 new logos for digital-enabled CX solutions and eight for HRO/ Payroll Processing.

–          Expanded our engagement with 45+ existing clients for HGS’ core CX and digital solutions (RPA, digital engagement, analytics, cloud and social care, etc.)

• Clientele: As of March 31, 2024, HGS had 324 active CX/ BPM clients and 797 HRO/Payroll processing clients. Digital Media business (NXTDIGITAL) has a customer base of more than 6 million.

 

• Solutions and Alliances:

−         New focus on cybersecurity:

Ø  Launched HGS CyberSecurity – a new suite of solutions that leverage AI and ML to provide enterprises with state-of-the-art protection against evolving cyber threats.

Ø  Signed a strategic partnership with Cranium, the leading enterprise AI security and trust software firm, to advance AI trustworthiness and revolutionize digital customer experiences.

−         Partnered with Form1 Partners, the leading commercialisation partner for B2B tech scale-ups and trusted source of breakthrough technology driving our digital future, to provide cutting-edge solutions to clients.

• Employee Headcount: 18,335 as of March 31, 2024.
• Geo Presence:

−         As of March 31, 2024, HGS had presence in nine countries, including 32 global delivery centers.

−         Digital Media business covers 4,500 pin codes covered in India, two lakh kilometres of owned + partner fibre networks, and 125+ owned-and-operated NXTHUBs set up across India

• Awards & Recognition:

−         HGS is positioned as ‘Leader’ within the NelsonHall CX Services Transformation NEAT – in 3 market segments including Revenue Generation, Improvement Capability and Cost Optimization.

−         HGS is recognized in the Horizon 2 category as “Enterprise Innovator” in the HFS Horizons: Customer Experience Service Providers, 2024.

−         For the 14th year in a row, HGS has been selected for IAOP 2024 Global Outsourcing 100 list, in the Leader Judging Size category. We received star recognition for below:

o   Customer Reference

o   Awards and Certifications

o   Programs for Innovation

o   Programs for Corporate Social Responsibility

• Outsourcing Service Areas
• Customer Relationship Management
• Industry-Specific Services
• Transaction Processing

−         Recognized as “The Booming 15 – Service & Technology Provider Standouts – Global & Americas” in the ISG Index 4Q 2023 – Managed Services and As-a service Market Insights.

−         HGS is identified as notable provider in the “Forrester Business Process Outsourcing Services Landscape, Q4 2023 report”.

−         HGS earned top honors at the AccelHERate and DivHERsity Awards 2024

o   Top 20 Most Innovative Practices – DivHERsity Hiring

o   Top 20 Most Innovative Practices – Women L&D Programs

−         NDIGITAL won the prestigious “Industry Gamechangers Award 2024” at the Video & Broadband Summit 2024

• Key Highlights from the Digital Media business:

−         CelerityX has entered into a strategic partnership with the Maharashtra State Cooperative Credit Societies Federation (MAFCOCS); To enable secure and high uptime banking connectivity through the OneX solution for over 40,000 branches in the state, with the potential to serve over 100,000 branches nationwide.

−         OIL subsidiary has completed majority acquisition (51%) of leading Mumbai-based ISP Seven Star’s broadband business and signed on a strategic alliance with Triple Play broadband, a leading Delhi-based ISP. This has helped in adding 100,000 broadband customers in high ARPU markets.

−         Broadband and digital TV verticals grew significantly, with customer bases increasing by 23.8% and 8.3%, respectively, in FY2024.