Wipro stock price today: CEO Thierry Delaporte’s resignation leads to drop; here’s what analysts expect | India Business News

Wipro share price today: Wipro stock price experienced a 1% drop on Monday, hitting a low of Rs 479 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The sudden departure of CEO and Managing Director Thierry Delaporte caught investors off guard, leading to concerns about the company’s immediate future, said an ET report. Many brokerage firms have issued sell ratings on Wipro’s stock, anticipating a period of uncertainty before any potential turnaround.
Global brokerages have varying opinions on Wipro’s stock. CITI, CLSA, and Morgan Stanley all have sell ratings, with target prices ranging from Rs 440 to Rs 450. Jefferies rates Wipro as underperforming, setting a target price of Rs 470, while Nomura maintains a reduced rating with a target price of Rs 410.
Nomura analyst Abhishek Bhandari stated, “We believe the revenue growth recovery for Wipro is going to be slow and unlikely to change significantly due to the CEO change in the near term. We would keep a close eye on his strategy in the coming quarters. We expect Wipro to lag its peer set growth rate in FY25.”
Investors are waiting for clarification regarding any strategic or organisational changes, as well as capital allocation plans, from the new CEO and MD, Srini Pallia.
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Pallia has been part of Wipro since 1992, holding various leadership positions. These include serving as President of Wipro’s Consumer Business Unit and Global Head of Business Application Services. Recently, he was CEO for Americas 1, Wipro’s largest and fastest-growing market, overseeing multiple industry sectors. Pallia will be located in New Jersey, USA, becoming Wipro’s first insider CEO since 2016.
CLSA acknowledged the ongoing trend of a new CEO every 4-5 years and expressed optimism about Pallia’s potential, although they emphasised the challenging task of turning things around. On the other hand, Jefferies analysts highlighted Delaporte’s premature departure before his expected five-year tenure ending in June 2025, along with other senior-level exits, indicating persistent execution challenges within the company.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, Wipro has experienced consistent turnover at the top level, with eight CEOs. This turnover rate is the highest among India-based IT services firms. The list of CEOs includes Vivek Paul, Azim Premji, Girish Paranjpe, and Suresh Vaswani (who served jointly), TK Kurien, Abidali Neemuchwala, Thierry Delaporte, and now Srinivas Pallia.
According to Dipeshkumar Mehta from Emkay Global, Wipro has consistently lagged behind its competitors due to issues such as poor execution, frequent changes in leadership, portfolio challenges, and a lacklustre record in mergers and acquisitions. However, under Thierry’s leadership, Wipro has undergone significant restructuring efforts aimed at simplifying the organisational structure, enhancing decision-making agility through empowered Global Account Executives (GAEs), strengthening relationships with partner ecosystems, and bolstering capabilities through strategic acquisitions like Capco.
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He noted that Wipro has been experiencing an influx of talent from diverse backgrounds and organisations, alongside the departure of longstanding Wipro veterans. This shift may have contributed to cultural differences and a feeling of disconnection within the organisation.
Pallia is expected to gain better internal acceptance and promptly address senior-level turnover, aiming to boost employee morale within the company.
Analysts at Kotak Institutional Equities anticipate Wipro’s continued underperformance compared to its peers in terms of growth in FY2025.
Kotak’s Kawaljeet Saluja was quoted as saying, “Turning around the business in a difficult environment is all the more challenging. Wipro has to deal with the dual challenges—internal as well as external. The stock trades at ~20X FY2026E EPS, almost on par with Infosys and only at a marginal discount to HCLT. The valuations are expensive for the growth profile.”