Wipro shares rose 2 percent in early trade on Friday, extending gains for the second consecutive session after the IT services major reported its second-quarter earnings. Brokerage firm Nomura maintained its Buy rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 200, implying an upside of around 15 percent from Thursday's closing price. It cited slightly better-than-expected revenue and expectations of a gradual recovery in operating margins.

Wipro shares climbed to Rs 177.53 in early trade, compared with Thursday's closing price of Rs 174.05, when the stock had gained 1.83 percent ahead of the earnings announcement. Despite the recent recovery, Wipro shares have declined 34.9 percent so far in 2026, significantly underperforming the Nifty 50, which has fallen around 12 percent during the same period. The company's market capitalisation stood at approximately Rs 1.72 lakh crore.

Nomura said Wipro's second-quarter revenue slightly exceeded its estimates, while operating margins were broadly in line with expectations. The company's revenue guidance for the December quarter was also largely in line with the brokerage's projections.

The brokerage added that deal wins declined during the quarter due to delays in contract signings. However, Wipro's management expects operating margins to return to its target range of 17-17.5 percent over time, indicating scope for further profitability improvement. Nomura also highlighted the stock's valuation, noting that Wipro trades at around 12 times its estimated FY28 earnings per share.

Wipro on Thursday reported a 4.5 percent sequential decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 3,200.6 crore for the September quarter, compared with Rs 3,352 crore in the preceding quarter. Revenue from operations rose 1.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to Rs 24,752.7 crore. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, analysts had expected net profit of Rs 3,248.6 crore and revenue of Rs 24,733 crore. While profit fell short of expectations, revenue marginally exceeded estimates.

The company's IT services revenue stood at $2,611.5 million, declining 0.1 percent sequentially in reported dollar terms and remaining flat in constant currency terms. For the October-December quarter, Wipro guided for IT services revenue of $2,571 million to $2,625 million, translating into sequential growth of minus 1.5 percent to plus 0.5 percent in constant currency terms.