New Delhi: NIIT Limited, a global leader in skills and talent development, reported its results for the second quarter ending 30 September 2016. The performance of two segments -Corporate Learning Business and Skills & Careers Business – was main drivers for NIIT’s Q2 FY17 results. Surprisingly, NIIT recorded 10% EBITDA margin for the first time in 4 years, on a growth of 10% in net revenue.
In Q2 FY17 quarter, the company recorded a Net Revenue of Rs. 298.4 Cr, up 10 % YoY; Operational PAT of Rs. 8.7 Cr, up 43% YoY; and PAT (including Associate Profit) of Rs. 21.6 Cr up 4% YoY. The company recorded EBITDA at Rs. 28.6 Cr up 13% YoY, on an Operating Margin of 10%, up 33 bps YoY. Net Debt reduced substantially to Rs. 91.7 Cr down 30% QoQ.
Commenting on the company’s performance during the quarter, Mr. Rahul Patwardhan, Chief Executive Officer, NIIT Limited said, “NIIT has demonstrated continued revenue growth for the 6th consecutive quarter on course to achieving a leadership role in the Digital Learning World. This comes on the back of a robust growth of 23% YoY this quarter in our Corporate Learning Business and a strong profit improvement in our Skills & Careers Business which recorded a 22% YoY growth in EBITDA. This quarter we also reduced net debt and made substantial improvement in working capital management.”
In a significant development, towards driving digital transformation for tier 1 organizations in India, China and Emerging Markets, NIIT entered into an exclusive partnership with US based OpenMatters, LLC led by Barry Libert, renowned Digital Transformation Board Advisor. This initiative will enable the top leadership of top tier firms to become digital leaders who will drive digital transformation initiatives that lead to greater growth and value. In a related move, Barry Libert has been appointed as a Digital Advisor to the NIIT Board.
NIIT’s current digital transformation training portfolio of StackRoute and DigiNxt focus on Digital Innovator training and Digital Developer training respectively. Now this new relationship with Barry Libert and OpenMatters will expand its digital offerings to Digital Leader training, and allow NIIT to address the end-to-end needs of organizations seeking to reskill their entire workforce from CXOs to frontline workers to succeed in the digital age.
Giving further impetus to NIIT’s digital transformation agenda, the company recently acquired the business of Bangalore-based start-up Perceptron Learning Solutions Private Limited. The strategic acquisition brings together complementary technology platforms and capabilities of NIIT and Perceptron, enabling NIIT to further accelerate its Digital Transformation initiatives – StackRoute, digiNxt, NIIT.tv and Training.com. Together with existing platforms, this will become an integral part of NIIT’s future multi-modal learning platform and 360 degree learning eco-system. Further, Perceptron’s co-founders and engineering team will strengthen NIIT’s technology talent pool with their proven expertise.
Corporate Learning Group (CLG) recorded net revenues of Rs. 178.6 Cr, up 23% YoY. Managed Training Services (MTS) continued to grow, contributing 94% to the total CLG revenue.
CLG continued to transform the user experience of its services through investments in digital platforms such as EASE and Sourcing Exchange. During the quarter, NIIT inaugurated delivery centre at Dublin by Minister for Education and Skills, Ireland, Richard Bruton TD.
Mr. Sapnesh Lalla, Group President, Corporate Learning Group (CLG), NIIT Limited said, “During the quarter, NIIT’s Corporate Learning Group continued to deliver strong profitability, recording an EBITDA of Rs 20.5 Cr, up 21% YoY. The overall CLG revenue visibility stood at USD 219.3 Mn up 15% YoY.”
Skills and Careers Group (SNC) recorded a net revenue of Rs. 98.1 Cr during Q2, with an Operating Margin at 9% up 198 bps (22%) YoY, due to sharp focus on high margin DigiNXT, Banking & Management portfolio.
NIIT unveiled its Flagship Training Centre at Tongren Polytechnic College in China to develop a pool of next generation IT professionals in the field of Big Data and Analytics. During the quarter NIIT entered into strategic tie-ups in Vietnam, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Kenya to offer programs in Digital Transformation.
