Shares of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) rose 1% in intraday trade on Friday, hitting a more than seven-month high of Rs 3,498 on the BSE, as investors turned to defensive stocks in a volatile market.

Shares of the information technology major climbed for a third straight day, gaining 4% in the period. It was quoted at its highest level since May 18, 2022.

Over the past month, TCS has risen 5% against a 1.8% decline for the S&P BSE Sensex, while over the past three months, it has gained 9% against a 1% drop for the benchmark index. However, it has fallen 9% over the past year, compared with a 2.3% gain for the Sensex index.

TCS bucked the trend in the December quarter (Q3FY23), delivering revenue growth that beat market expectations. The revenue for the quarter was Rs 58,229 crore, an increase of 19.1% year-over-year as reported and 13.5% year-over-year in constant currency (CC). The company’s quarterly profit rose 11% year-on-year to Rs 10,846 crore.

Subsequently, TCS’s revenue rose 5.2%. The company reported a third-quarter CC growth of 2.2% quarter-over-quarter, while dollar revenue rose 2.9%. EBIT margin improved 50 basis points sequentially to 24.5%.

The board has declared a third interim dividend of Rs 8 and a special dividend of Rs 67 per Re 1 share. The third interim and special dividend will be paid to shareholders on Friday, February 3 2023. The stock went ex-dividend on January 17, 2023. TCS said it committed to delivering 80-100% of its free cash flow to shareholders.

TCS insists it will exit FY23 with an EBIT margin of 25% in the fourth quarter. The company said that the improvement in margins in the medium term would be driven by higher utilisation, lower subcontractor costs and lower attrition. It said pricing is one of the means to improve margins but acknowledged that raising prices would be challenging in the current environment.