Shares of India's Infosys Technologies Ltd. climbed ahead of regular trading Tuesday after the company's quarterly earnings and forecast outstripped expectations.
The stock jumped $2.36, or 4.3 percent, to $57.19 in premarket trading.
Strong results for Infosys, a bellwether information technology outsourcing company, raised hopes that businesses are starting to spend again on technology. The company said its results were driven by recovering demand in the U.S., especially in the financial services sector.
In a client note, Kaufman Bros. analyst Karl Keirstead raised his price target for Infosys shares to $58 from $53. He said the earnings report bodes well for business spending on IT in general and offshore IT spending in particular.
Keirstead the results could be a good sign for Cognizant Technology Solutions, an outsourcing firm headquartered Teaneck, N.J. with major operations in India. Cognizant shares rose 67 cents to $47.15 in premarket trading.
Late Monday, Infosys reported a profit of $334 million on sales of $1.2 billion. Both topped analysts' expectations.
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