EXL Reports 2024 First Quarter Results
ExlService Holdings, Inc. reported a strong start to 2024 with a 9% year-over-year revenue increase to $436.5 million and an 8.9% growth in adjusted diluted EPS to $0.38. The company raised its revenue and EPS guidance for 2024, expecting revenue of $1.79 billion to $1.82 billion and adjusted EPS of $1.58 to $1.62, representing 10% to 13% growth over the prior year. The company continues to focus on data analytics and digital solutions, showcasing impressive financial performance and client acquisitions.
Revenue increased by 9% year-over-year to $436.5 million.
Adjusted diluted EPS grew by 8.9% to $0.38.
ExlService raised its revenue guidance for 2024 to $1.79 billion to $1.82 billion.
Adjusted EPS guidance for 2024 increased to $1.58 to $1.62, representing 10% to 13% growth.
Won 16 new clients in the first quarter of 2024, showcasing strong client acquisition.
Diluted EPS decreased by 3.3% to $0.29.
Operating income margin decreased to 14.1% from 14.8% in Q1 2023.
Adjusted operating income margin declined to 18.9% from 19.4% in Q1 2023.
Sequential revenue growth was 5.4%, slightly lower than expected.
Insights
Reviewing ExlService Holdings, Inc.'s first-quarter financials indicates a resilient performance in the face of a challenging macroeconomic environment. The 9.0% year-over-year revenue growth is an affirmative signal of the company's market positioning and its ability to grow despite broader economic headwinds. Such an uptick in revenue aligns well with the strategic emphasis on data and AI-led solutions, which seem to be garnering positive client responses. The reported sequential revenue increase of 5.4% further confirms this positive trajectory.
However, while the headline numbers are robust, a slight decline in GAAP diluted EPS by 3.3% year-over-year requires a closer look. This could reflect various factors such as increased operational costs, investments in growth initiatives or changes in capital structure including the mentioned 5-for-1 stock split. On the flip side, the adjusted diluted EPS has risen by 8.9%, signifying management's ability to enhance profitability through strategic initiatives, possibly indicating effective cost management or higher-margin service offerings.
The revised full-year revenue guidance, with a raised bottom range and the expected 10% to 12% year-over-year growth, alongside the adjusted EPS outlook suggesting 10% to 13% growth, could instill confidence among stakeholders. It is noteworthy that this guidance takes into account the current foreign exchange projections, which can be pivotal for companies with significant international operations like EXLS.
From a retail investor's perspective, these results and revised forecasts might be perceived positively, as they suggest a company that is not only managing current challenges but also poised for future growth. Caution should be maintained though, as these projections are subject to the volatile macroeconomic scenario and currency fluctuations.
The operational performance of ExlService Holdings, reflected through a marginally reduced operating income margin from 14.8% to 14.1%, hints at tightening operational efficiency or potentially increased investment in growth avenues. The adjustment in operating income margin from 19.4% to 18.9% also aligns with this observation, though it still signifies a strong underlying business model capable of maintaining profitability in spite of increased costs that many businesses are currently facing.
Another aspect to consider for investors is the company's client acquisition strategy and market presence growth, exemplified by winning 16 new clients during the quarter. The vertical segment growth, particularly in the insurance segment which has shown a noteworthy year-over-year increase in revenue of approximately 15.2%, underlines EXLS's strength in this domain.
The strategic share repurchase agreement indicating a buyback of $125 million worth of common stock demonstrates management's confidence in the company's intrinsic value and could be a positive sign for investors looking for signals of long-term shareholder value enhancement.
2024 First Quarter Revenue of
Q1 Diluted EPS (GAAP) (1) of
Q1 Adjusted Diluted EPS (Non-GAAP) (1) (2) of
NEW YORK, May 02, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ExlService Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXLS), a leading data analytics and digital operations and solutions company, today announced its financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2024.
Rohit Kapoor, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are pleased with our first quarter results and solid start to the year, as we delivered revenue growth and adjusted diluted EPS growth of
Maurizio Nicolelli, Chief Financial Officer, said, “While we remain cautious on the macro-economic environment, we are raising the bottom of our range for both revenue and EPS based on our solid momentum in the first quarter and current visibility for the remainder of the year. We now expect revenue to be in the range of
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- Prior period information has been adjusted to reflect the 5-for-1 forward stock split of our common stock effected in August 2023. See Note 19 – Capital Structure to consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, for further details.
- Reconciliations of adjusted (non-GAAP) financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, where applicable, are included at the end of this release under “Reconciliation of Adjusted Financial Measures to GAAP Measures.” These non-GAAP measures, including adjusted diluted EPS and constant currency measures, are not measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with GAAP.
Financial Highlights: First Quarter 2024
- Revenue for the quarter ended March 31, 2024, increased to
$436.5 million compared to$400.6 million for the first quarter of 2023, an increase of9.0% on a reported basis and8.8% on a constant currency basis. Revenue increased by5.4% sequentially on a reported basis and constant currency basis, from the fourth quarter of 2023.
| Revenue | Gross Margin | |||||||||||
| Three months ended | Three months ended | |||||||||||
| Reportable Segments | March 31, 2024 | March 31, 2023 | March 31, 2024 | March 31, 2023 | ||||||||
| (dollars in millions) | ||||||||||||
| Insurance | $ | 145.1 | $ | 125.9 | 36.4 | % | 34.6 | % | ||||
| Healthcare | 26.3 | 26.7 | 34.0 | % | 29.6 | % | ||||||
| Emerging Business | 74.4 | 66.2 | 44.9 | % | 45.6 | % | ||||||
| Analytics | 190.7 | 181.8 | 35.6 | % | 37.1 | % | ||||||
| Total Revenue, net | $ | 436.5 | $ | 400.6 | 37.4 | % | 37.2 | % | ||||
- Operating income margin for the quarter ended March 31, 2024 was
14.1% , compared to14.8% for the first quarter of 2023 and13.1% for the fourth quarter of 2023. Adjusted operating income margin for the quarter ended March 31, 2024 was18.9% , compared to19.4% for the first quarter of 2023 and17.8% for the fourth quarter of 2023.
- Diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2024 was
$0.29 , compared to$0.30 for the first quarter of 2023 and$0.24 for the fourth quarter of 2023. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2024 was$0.38 , compared to$0.35 , both for the first quarter of 2023 and the fourth quarter of 2023.
Business Highlights: First Quarter 2024
- Won 16 new clients in the first quarter of 2024, with 6 clients in the digital operations and solutions business and 10 clients in analytics.
- EXL named top performer and Leader among the 26 leading analytics and AI service providers in Everest Group’s Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Services Specialists PEAK Matrix® Assessment 2024.
- Held an AI in Action virtual customer symposium attended by over 2,300 clients, prospects, analysts, advisors and partners. The event highlighted the use of enterprise data to bridge the gap between strategy and operations and make AI real. A replay can be found here.
- Rohit Kapoor named chairman, Vikram Pandit transitioned to lead director; Thomas Bartlett appointed to EXL’s board of directors and will serve on the board’s audit committee and nominating and governance committee.
- Vikas Bhalla and Vivek Jetley named president of EXL in addition to their current roles of head of insurance and head of analytics, respectively.
- EXL entered into an accelerated share repurchase agreement to repurchase
$125 million of the company’s common stock as part of its current$500 million stock repurchase program.
2024 Guidance
Based on current visibility, and a U.S. dollar to Indian rupee exchange rate of 83.50, U.K. pound sterling to U.S. dollar exchange rate of 1.27, U.S. dollar to the Philippine peso exchange rate of 57.50 and all other currencies at current exchange rates, we are providing the following guidance for the full year 2024:
- Revenue of
$1.79 billion to$1.82 billion , representing an increase of10% to12% on both a reported and constant currency basis from 2023.
- Adjusted diluted earnings per share of
$1.58 t o$1.62 , representing an increase of10% to13% from 2023.
Conference Call
ExlService Holdings, Inc. will host a conference call on Thursday, May 2, 2024 at 10:00 A.M. ET to discuss the Company’s quarterly operating and financial results. The conference call will be available live via the internet by accessing the investor relations section of EXL’s website at ir.exlservice.com, where an accompanying investor-friendly spreadsheet of historical operating and financial data can also be accessed. Please access the website at least fifteen minutes prior to the call to register, download and install any necessary audio software.
Please note that there is a new system to access the live call-in order to ask questions. To join the live call, please register here. A dial-in and unique PIN will be provided to join the call. For those who cannot access the live broadcast, a replay will be available on the EXL website ir.exlservice.com for a period of twelve months.
About ExlService Holdings, Inc.
EXL (NASDAQ: EXLS) is a leading data analytics and digital operations and solutions company. We partner with clients using a data and AI-led approach to reinvent business models, drive better business outcomes and unlock growth with speed. EXL harnesses the power of data, analytics, AI, and deep industry knowledge to transform operations for the world’s leading corporations in industries including insurance, healthcare, banking and financial services, media and retail, among others. EXL was founded in 1999 with the core values of innovation, collaboration, excellence, integrity and respect. We are headquartered in New York and have more than 55,000 employees spanning six continents. For more information, visit www.exlservice.com.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You should not place undue reliance on those statements because they are subject to numerous uncertainties and factors relating to EXL's operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond EXL’s control. Forward-looking statements include information concerning EXL’s possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of its business strategy. These statements may include words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate” or similar expressions. These statements are based on assumptions that we have made in light of management's experience in the industry as well as its perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors it believes are appropriate under the circumstances. You should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Although EXL believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors could affect EXL’s actual financial results or results of operations and could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. These factors, which include our ability to maintain and grow client demand, our ability to hire and retain sufficiently trained employees, and our ability to accurately estimate and/or manage costs, rising interest rates, rising inflation and recessionary economic trends, are discussed in more detail in EXL’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including EXL’s Annual Report on Form 10-K. You should keep in mind that any forward-looking statement made herein, or elsewhere, speaks only as of the date on which it is made. New risks and uncertainties come up from time to time, and it is impossible to predict these events or how they may affect EXL. EXL has no obligation to update any forward-looking statements after the date hereof, except as required by applicable law.
| EXLSERVICE HOLDINGS, INC. CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (UNAUDITED) (In thousands, except per share amount and share count) | |||||||
| Three months ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | ||||||
| Revenues, net | $ | 436,507 | $ | 400,643 | |||
| Cost of revenues(1) | 273,424 | 251,469 | |||||
| Gross profit(1) | 163,083 | 149,174 | |||||
| Operating expenses: | |||||||
| General and administrative expenses | 53,243 | 46,746 | |||||
| Selling and marketing expenses | 35,970 | 29,493 | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization expense | 12,346 | 13,487 | |||||
| Total operating expenses | 101,559 | 89,726 | |||||
| Income from operations | 61,524 | 59,448 | |||||
| Foreign exchange gain, net | 359 | 105 | |||||
| Interest expense | (3,291 | ) | (3,385 | ) | |||
| Other income, net | 3,952 | 3,155 | |||||
| Income before income tax expense and earnings from equity affiliates | 62,544 | 59,323 | |||||
| Income tax expense | 13,753 | 8,058 | |||||
| Income before earnings from equity affiliates | 48,791 | 51,265 | |||||
| Gain/(loss) from equity-method investment | (28 | ) | 66 | ||||
| Net income attributable to ExlService Holdings, Inc. stockholders | $ | 48,763 | $ | 51,331 | |||
| Earnings per share attributable to ExlService Holdings, Inc. stockholders: | |||||||
| Basic | $ | 0.30 | $ | 0.31 | |||
| Diluted | $ | 0.29 | $ | 0.30 | |||
| Weighted-average number of shares used in computing earnings per share attributable to ExlService Holdings Inc. stockholders: | |||||||
| Basic | 165,082,387 | 167,197,820 | |||||
| Diluted | 166,726,853 | 169,657,400 | |||||
| (1) Exclusive of depreciation and amortization expense. | |||||||
| EXLSERVICE HOLDINGS, INC. CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (UNAUDITED) (In thousands, except per share amount and share count) | ||||||||
| As of | ||||||||
| March 31, 2024 | December 31, 2023 | |||||||
| Assets | ||||||||
| Current assets: | ||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 108,565 | $ | 136,953 | ||||
| Short-term investments | 137,585 | 153,881 | ||||||
| Restricted cash | 4,291 | 4,062 | ||||||
| Accounts receivable, net | 335,523 | 308,108 | ||||||
| Other current assets | 78,753 | 76,669 | ||||||
| Total current assets | 664,717 | 679,673 | ||||||
| Property and equipment, net | 101,622 | 100,373 | ||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 66,799 | 64,856 | ||||||
| Restricted cash | 4,376 | 4,386 | ||||||
| Deferred tax assets, net | 91,840 | 82,927 | ||||||
| Goodwill | 405,574 | 405,639 | ||||||
| Other intangible assets, net | 47,080 | 50,164 | ||||||
| Long-term investments | 4,404 | 4,430 | ||||||
| Other assets | 52,979 | 49,524 | ||||||
| Total assets | $ | 1,439,391 | $ | 1,441,972 | ||||
| Liabilities and stockholders’ equity | ||||||||
| Current liabilities: | ||||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | 3,093 | $ | 5,055 | ||||
| Current portion of long-term borrowings | 65,000 | 65,000 | ||||||
| Deferred revenue | 16,939 | 12,318 | ||||||
| Accrued employee costs | 50,970 | 117,137 | ||||||
| Accrued expenses and other current liabilities | 107,059 | 112,900 | ||||||
| Current portion of operating lease liabilities | 13,486 | 12,780 | ||||||
| Income taxes payable, net | 4,894 | 1,213 | ||||||
| Total current liabilities | 261,441 | 326,403 | ||||||
| Long-term borrowings, less current portion | 280,000 | 135,000 | ||||||
| Operating lease liabilities, less current portion | 59,876 | 58,175 | ||||||
| Deferred tax liabilities, net | 1,435 | 1,495 | ||||||
| Other non-current liabilities | 33,384 | 31,462 | ||||||
| Total liabilities | 636,136 | 552,535 | ||||||
| Commitments and contingencies | ||||||||
| ExlService Holdings, Inc. Stockholders’ equity: | ||||||||
| Preferred stock, | — | — | ||||||
| Common stock, | 204 | 203 | ||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | 502,827 | 508,028 | ||||||
| Retained earnings | 1,132,426 | 1,083,663 | ||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive loss | (130,436 | ) | (127,040 | ) | ||||
| Total including shares held in treasury | 1,505,021 | 1,464,854 | ||||||
| Less: 42,309,378 shares as of March 31, 2024 and 38,132,158 shares as of December 31, 2023, held in treasury, at cost | (701,766 | ) | (575,417 | ) | ||||
| Total Stockholders’ equity | 803,255 | 889,437 | ||||||
| Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity | $ | 1,439,391 | $ | 1,441,972 | ||||
| EXLSERVICE HOLDINGS, INC. Reconciliation of Adjusted Financial Measures to GAAP Measures |
In addition to its reported operating results in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), EXL has included in this release certain financial measures that are considered non-GAAP financial measures, including the following:
| (i) | Adjusted operating income and adjusted operating income margin; | ||
| (ii) | Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA margin; | ||
| (iii) | Adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share; and | ||
| (iv) | Revenue growth on constant currency basis. | ||
These non-GAAP financial measures are not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles, should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP, and may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. Accordingly, the financial results calculated in accordance with GAAP and reconciliations from those financial statements should be carefully evaluated. EXL believes that providing these non-GAAP financial measures may help investors better understand EXL’s underlying financial performance. Management also believes that these non-GAAP financial measures, when read in conjunction with EXL’s reported results, can provide useful supplemental information for investors analyzing period-to-period comparisons of the Company’s results and comparisons of the Company’s results with the results of other companies. Additionally, management considers some of these non-GAAP financial measures to determine variable compensation of its employees. The Company believes that it is unreasonably difficult to provide its earnings per share financial guidance in accordance with GAAP, or a qualitative reconciliation thereof, for a number of reasons, including, without limitation, the Company’s inability to predict its future stock-based compensation expense under ASC Topic 718, the amortization of intangibles associated with future acquisitions and the currency fluctuations and associated tax effects. As such, the Company presents guidance with respect to adjusted diluted earnings per share. The Company also incurs significant non-cash charges for depreciation that may not be indicative of the Company’s ability to generate cash flow.
EXL non-GAAP financial measures exclude, where applicable, stock-based compensation expense, amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets, provision for litigation matters, effects of termination of leases, certain defined social security contributions, allowance for certain material expected credit losses, other acquisition-related expenses or benefits and effect of any non-recurring tax adjustments. Acquisition-related expenses or benefits include, changes in the fair value of contingent consideration, external deal costs, integration expenses, direct and incremental travel costs and non-recurring benefits or losses. Our adjusted net income and adjusted diluted EPS also excludes the effects of income tax on the above pre-tax items, as applicable. The effects of income tax of each item is calculated by applying the statutory rate of the local tax regulations in the jurisdiction in which the item was incurred.
A limitation of using non-GAAP financial measures versus financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP is that non-GAAP financial measures do not reflect all of the amounts associated with our operating results as determined in accordance with GAAP and exclude costs that are recurring, namely stock-based compensation and amortization of acquisition-related intangible assets. EXL compensates for these limitations by providing specific information regarding the GAAP amounts excluded from non-GAAP financial measures to allow investors to evaluate such non-GAAP financial measures.
EXL’s primary exchange rate exposure is with the Indian rupee, the U.K. pound sterling and the Philippine peso. The average exchange rate of the U.S. dollar against the Indian rupee increased from 82.25 during the quarter ended March 31, 2023 to 83.12 during the quarter ended March 31, 2024, representing a depreciation of
The following table shows the reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and March 31, 2023, and the three months ended December 31, 2023:
| Reconciliation of Adjusted Operating Income and Adjusted EBITDA (Amounts in thousands) | ||||||||||||
| Three months ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Net Income (GAAP) | $ | 48,763 | $ | 51,331 | $ | 40,283 | ||||||
| add: Income tax expense | 13,753 | 8,058 | 15,763 | |||||||||
| add/(subtract): Foreign exchange gain, net, interest expense, gain/(loss) from equity-method investment and other income/(loss), net | (992 | ) | 59 | (1,780 | ) | |||||||
| Income from operations (GAAP) | $ | 61,524 | $ | 59,448 | $ | 54,266 | ||||||
| add: Stock-based compensation expense | 17,852 | 14,407 | 15,452 | |||||||||
| add: Amortization of acquisition-related intangibles | 3,080 | 4,149 | 3,168 | |||||||||
| subtract: Reversal for expected credit losses (a) | — | — | (264 | ) | ||||||||
| add/(subtract): Other expenses/(benefits) (b) | — | (89 | ) | 895 | ||||||||
| Adjusted operating income (Non-GAAP) | $ | 82,456 | $ | 77,915 | $ | 73,517 | ||||||
| Adjusted operating income margin as a % of Revenue (Non-GAAP) | 18.9 | % | 19.4 | % | 17.8 | % | ||||||
| add: Depreciation on long-lived assets | 9,266 | 8,589 | 9,130 | |||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA (Non-GAAP) | $ | 91,722 | $ | 86,504 | $ | 82,647 | ||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA margin as a % of revenue (Non-GAAP) | 21.0 | % | 21.6 | % | 20.0 | % | ||||||
| (a) To exclude the effects of reversal for expected credit losses on accounts receivable related to a customer bankruptcy event. (b) To exclude effects of lease termination of $nil and | ||||||||||||
| Reconciliation of Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share (Amounts in thousands, except per share data) | ||||||||||||
| Three months ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, | December 31, | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | 2023 | ||||||||||
| Net income (GAAP) | $ | 48,763 | $ | 51,331 | $ | 40,283 | ||||||
| add: Stock-based compensation expense | 17,852 | 14,407 | 15,452 | |||||||||
| add: Amortization of acquisition-related intangibles | 3,080 | 4,149 | 3,168 | |||||||||
| subtract: Reversal for expected credit losses (a) | — | — | (264 | ) | ||||||||
| subtract: Changes in fair value of contingent consideration | (589 | ) | — | (600 | ) | |||||||
| add/(subtract): Other expenses/(benefits) (b) | — | (89 | ) | 613 | ||||||||
| subtract: Tax impact on stock-based compensation expense (c) | (5,358 | ) | (9,830 | ) | (374 | ) | ||||||
| subtract: Tax impact on amortization of acquisition-related intangibles | (766 | ) | (1,023 | ) | (792 | ) | ||||||
| add: Tax impact on reversal for expected credit losses | — | — | 65 | |||||||||
| add: Tax impact on changes in fair value of contingent consideration | 151 | — | 152 | |||||||||
| add/(subtract): Tax impact on other expenses/(benefits) | — | 22 | (157 | ) | ||||||||
| add: Other tax expenses (d) | — | — | 223 | |||||||||
| Adjusted net income (Non-GAAP) | $ | 63,133 | $ | 58,967 | $ | 57,769 | ||||||
| Adjusted diluted earnings per share (Non-GAAP) | $ | 0.38 | $ | 0.35 | $ | 0.35 | ||||||
| (a) To exclude the effects of reversal for expected credit losses on accounts receivable related to a customer bankruptcy event. (b) To exclude effects of lease termination of $nil and (c) Tax impact includes (d) To exclude other tax expenses related to certain deferred tax assets and liabilities. | ||||||||||||
Contacts:
Investor Relations
John Kristoff
Vice President, Investor Relations
+1 212 209 4613
ir@exlservice.com
Media
Keith Little
Senior Manager, Media Relations
+1 703 598 0980
media.relations@exlservice.com
FAQ
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