Maintain ‘buy’ on Wipro with unchanged TP of Rs 467

Wipro’s new initiatives in over a decade — showcased at its analyst meet — are exciting and reinforce our conviction on the company. The chairman’s statement of a ‘bolder, risk-taking, agile, obsessed with growth and think big’ Wipro marks a remarkable shift at the hitherto ‘introvert’ company.

The CEO outlined five key strategic priorities. Accelerate growth. Strengthen clients and partnerships. Lead with business solutions. Build talent at scale. Simplify the operating model. We believe the initiatives are in right direction and timely since the industry is accelerating, and will monitor the progress thereof. Maintain ‘buy’ with an unchanged TP of Rs 467 (25x FY22E PE).

Wipro has been underperforming peers for more than a decade. Every time, the company underperformed owing to lack of aggression in its leadership. We reckon the chairman may have invested several hundred hours in identifying the problem and outlining the priorities and the plan of action. It is probably the first effort of this scale in over a decade. Key highlights of the speech follow.

The CEO explained the five strategic priorities, but also focussed on his strategy of prioritising and deprioritising sectors and markets, bringing in a chief growth officer, creating a large deals team and leveraging strategic partnerships. He also highlighted the focus on next-gen technologies, domain and consulting and a simplified operating model. The CEO also highlighted renewed focus on acquiring right and high-calibre talent at scale and transforming the organisation towards meritocracy.