The season is done, and Indian IT ended it better than it began. All four big firms have now reported Q1 FY27, none disappointed, and Infosys capped the season by raising its full-year guidance, turning a story of stabilisation into one of recovery. After a first half in which the Nifty IT index fell about 30%, four steady results and one guidance raise have changed the tone.
The June quarter was never expected to sparkle. In a soft demand environment, the test was whether these firms could defend margins and hold their guidance, and on that measure the season went better than feared, with Infosys going a step further.
The Q1 FY27 scorecard
Here is how all four stack up now that the season is complete.
The order of size is TCS, Infosys, HCLTech, Wipro, and the order of strength this quarter followed roughly the same path. TCS reported the biggest profit and the fattest margin, Infosys delivered the most bullish guidance, HCLTech the steadiest, and Wipro the softest revenue but a defended margin.
What The Numbers Say
TCS set the tone as the sector's bellwether. Its net profit of Rs 13,349 crore, up 5%, a 24% margin, and a $9.5 billion order book gave the season a confident opening, detailed in our TCS Q1 FY27 results coverage. As the largest firm, a steady TCS matters most for overall sentiment.
Infosys delivered the season's best signal at the end. It raised its full-year FY27 revenue guidance to 2 to 4% in constant currency from 1 to 3%, on profit of about Rs 7,000 crore and a 21.2% margin, as our Infosys Q1 FY27 results piece explains. A raise, from the only firm that guides for the full year, is the strongest demand signal the sector produced.
HCLTech was the quiet steady hand. It kept its full-year FY27 guidance of 2 to 4% unchanged while holding an 18.2% margin through the wage-hike quarter, as our HCLTech Q1 FY27 results piece covers. Wipro was the softest, with revenue down about 1.1% sequentially, yet it held its margin near 16.4% and guided for a flat Q2, covered in our Wipro Q1 FY27 results coverage.
The Common Thread: Recovery And AI
Two themes run through the season. The first is that nobody cut guidance and Infosys raised its, which is the single most important takeaway, because it shifts the story from demand holding to demand improving. After a first half dominated by fear that spending was falling off a cliff, that change of tone is what matters most.
The second is AI, framed the same way by all four. Each pointed to a growing pipeline of GenAI and AI-led deals, from TCS's order book to Infosys Topaz to HCLTech's AI Force platform to Wipro's Anthropic partnership, and each argued that AI is adding work rather than compressing it. Investors want the next few quarters to show that pipeline turning into revenue, but the message is consistent.
The rupee sits underneath all of it. IT drew support from a currency near a record low, since a stronger dollar lifts the rupee value of export earnings, as our rupee vs dollar today page tracks, which flattered every rupee revenue line this quarter.
What Comes Next
The season's verdict is encouraging, but it is a beginning, not a conclusion. A raised Infosys guide only pays off if the coming quarters deliver against it, so the September numbers are the real test of whether this is recovery or a false dawn. The market has already priced in some of the optimism, as our Indian stock market today wrap describes.
Attention now turns to the rest of earnings season and the macro calendar, including the RBI's early-August rate decision, previewed in our RBI August 2026 MPC preview. For IT specifically, the next checkpoint is whether the confidence Infosys showed holds through the year.
Risks To Monitor
The clearest risk is that recovery stalls. A raised guide shows demand is improving now, but a fresh slowdown could force Infosys to walk it back, which would hit sentiment harder than caution would have.
A second risk is the macro backdrop. With the US-Iran war lifting oil and pinning the rupee near a record low, a risk-off market could overshadow even good numbers, as our IT sector Q1 FY27 earnings preview flagged.
The third is AI-driven pricing. If clients start using AI efficiency to push rates down, margins could tighten across the sector even as deal volumes hold. This is general information, not investment advice.
Four results in, Indian IT has made its case: TCS brought the profit, HCLTech the steadiest guide, Wipro proved the weakest link could hold, and Infosys, by raising its outlook, suggested the sector is ready to climb off the floor. Whether that becomes a durable recovery rather than a pause is now a question for the quarters ahead, but the season closed with the sector sounding more confident than it has all year.