TCS vs Infosys vs Wipro vs HCL Tech: Hiring plans, salary hikes, guidance— is the worst over for IT stocks?
The Q1 numbers of Infosys were better, but TCS, Wipro and HCL Tech disappointed the Street.
TCS and Wipro reported a decline in revenue in constant currency (CC) year over year (YoY), but Infosys and HCL Tech fared better.
TCS's CC revenue declined 3.1 per cent, while that of Wipro fell 2.3 per cent YoY. Infosys' CC revenue rose by 3.8 per cent, while HCL Tech reported a 3.7 per cent YoY rise in CC revenue.
TCS's consolidated profit rose 6 per cent YoY to ₹ 12,760 crore. Infosys saw an 8.7 per cent YoY growth in profit. Wipro, too, reported a 10 per cent YoY rise in Q1 net profit at ₹ 3,336 crore. On the other hand, HCL Tech's profit fell 9.7 per cent YoY to ₹ 3,843 crore.
While the numbers show how India's top four IT players performed last quarter, other key details—such as guidance, headcount, hiring plans, and salary hikes—offer cues about how these companies are likely to fare in the coming quarters. Let's take a look:
Headcount and hiring plans: TCS's workforce grew by 5,090 sequentially, standing at 6,13,069 as of June 30, 2025, compared to 6,07,979 at the end of the March quarter of the last financial year.
However, IT services' attrition was 13.8 per cent for the last twelve months against 13.3 per cent in Q4FY25. According to reports, TCS plans to hire 42,000 freshers in FY26.
Salary hikes: TCS has not announced when it will plan salary hikes for its employees, but it has emphasised that its 'priority' focus is delivering wage hikes for its over six lakh workforce.
Guidance: TCS did not offer revenue guidance while declaring its Q1 results. However, its management said business from clients based abroad would be better than last year.
'The only thing that's a bottleneck at this time is a certain amount of lack of clarity in the market. So, once that lifts, we believe that the spend should come back," said Krithivasan.
Headcount and hiring plans: For Infosys, the number of total employees increased to 3,23,788 from 3,15,332 YoY and 3,23,578 QoQ.
Over the last twelve months (LTM), IT services voluntary attrition stood at 14.4 per cent, down from 12.7 per cent year over year and 14.1 per cent quarter over quarter.
According to its April announcement, Infosys plans to hire over 20,000 freshers in the current financial year.
Salary hikes: Infosys recently implemented a wage hike. However, it has not yet decided on the next pay hike for its employees.
Guidance: Infosys has guided for FY26 CC revenue growth of 1-3 per cent, upgrading the lower end of guidance from 0 to 1 per cent but leaving the upper end unchanged.
Headcount and hiring plans: HCL Tech's total headcount by the end of Q1FY25 was 2,23,151, down 269 from the end of the March quarter this calendar year, when it was 2,23,420.
HCL added 1,984 freshers during the quarter compared to 1,078 YoY.
The attrition rate over the last twelve months stood at 12.8 per cent, the same as the rate in Q1 of last year.
Salary hikes: HCL Tech did not make any major announcement regarding salary hikes. The company had earlier said its wage hike cycle would start from October 2025.
Guidance: HCL Tech expects its CC revenue to grow between 3 per cent and 5 per cent YoY, compared to its earlier estimate of 2 per cent to 5 per cent announced during the Q4FY25 results.
EBIT margin may be between 17 per cent to 18 per cent, slightly lower that the earlier estimate of 18 per cent to 19 per cent announced during the Q4FY25 results.
Headcount and hiring plans: Wipro's total headcount declined by 114 sequentially to 2,33,232, while attrition rate slightly increased to 15.1 per cent from 15 per cent in Q4FY25.
Earlier in January, Wipro said it plans to hire 10,000-12,000 freshers in FY26.
Salary hikes: Wipro has not announced salary hike plans for the current cycle. It gave wage hikes in September 2024.
Guidance: Wipro expects revenue from its IT services business segment to be in the range of $2,560 million to $2,612 million in Q2FY26. This translates to sequential guidance of -1.0 per cent to 1 per cent in CC terms.
The Nifty IT index has declined 10 per cent over the last year compared to a nearly 3 per cent rise in the equity benchmark Nifty 50. On a monthly scale, the IT index has lost over 7 per cent against a 2 per cent decline in the Nifty 50.
In the current uncertain milieu, it is too early to say with certainty that the worst is over for the IT sector, even as the sector is redefining its playbook.
"A sharp 20 per cent rise in AI, cybersecurity, and cloud roles signals a pivot from volume hiring to skill-centric recruitment, with GCCs recording an 8-10% hiring jump, Abhishek Jain, the head of research at Arihant Capital Markets, observed.
Jain underscored that Infosys stood out with $3.8 billion in deal wins, over half from new clients, and 7.5 per cent revenue growth, even as fresher hiring slowed and salary hikes stayed restrained at 5-9 per cent.
Attrition remains a challenge, prompting targeted retention efforts.
Much will depend on the demand environment in key markets such as North America and Europe, as well as the pace of AI-led transformation.
"AI is no longer a buzzword but a driver of 5-15% productivity gains, influencing both service delivery and margins. The sector's next leap hinges on capturing AI-led transformation amid prolonged deal closures and cautious client spending," said Jain.
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Read more stories by Nishant Kumar
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations expressed are those of individual analysts or broking firms, not Mint. We advise investors to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions, as market conditions can change rapidly and circumstances may vary.
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