TCS misses revenue estimates amid tariff-driven client caution

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India’s largest software-services exporter, reported quarterly revenue below analyst expectations on Thursday, as client spending slowed due to ongoing uncertainty around U.S. tariffs. The revenue miss has sparked concerns over demand for India’s $283 billion IT sector and negatively impacted shares of U.S.-listed Indian tech rivals Infosys and Wipro.

TCS CEO K Krithivasan noted on a conference call that delays in decision-making and project launches related to discretionary spending have persisted and intensified during the quarter. He said it is “too early” to predict when growth will return but suggested that clarity might emerge by late July or early August, depending on the U.S. spending bill’s progress.

TCS reported consolidated sales of 634.37 billion rupees ($7.40 billion) in Q1, rising 1.3% year-on-year but falling short of the 646.66 billion rupees analysts had forecasted. Four of TCS’s six verticals saw revenue declines compared to the previous year, with only banking and financial services (up 1%) and technology services (up 1.8%) showing growth.

Total order bookings dropped to $9.4 billion in the quarter, down from $12.2 billion in the previous quarter but higher than $8.3 billion a year ago.

Research analyst Sagar Shetty from StoxBox highlighted that the weak top-line numbers reflect ongoing client caution, a trend likely to affect other tier-1 IT firms and potentially lead to downward revisions in revenue guidance. HCLTech, Infosys, and Wipro are set to report results later in July. Following TCS’s announcement, Infosys shares fell 3.3% and Wipro shares dropped 4.2%.

Despite the revenue shortfall, TCS’s net profit rose 6% to 127.60 billion rupees, beating analyst expectations largely due to a delayed wage hike and higher other income.