India’s top IT players—Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and HCL Technologies—have declared record dividend payouts for FY25, distributing 93.5% of their annual profits to shareholders. The move underscores the sector’s commitment to pre-defined capital allocation policies and highlights a continued focus on shareholder returns, even amid a challenging business environment.
TCS announced a final dividend per share (DPS) of ₹30 for Q4FY25, taking the total DPS for the year to ₹126. The company’s payout ratio surged from 58% in FY24 to 94% in FY25, with a total shareholder outgo of ₹44,962 crore. Of this, ₹32,300 crore is set to go to Tata Sons, which held a 71.8% stake in TCS as of March 2025.
HCL Technologies, the third-largest Indian IT firm, declared a final DPS of ₹18, bringing the full-year dividend to ₹60—a 15.4% increase year-on-year. The company’s total dividend payout for FY25 stood at ₹16,250 crore, maintaining a high payout ratio of 93.5%. This also marks the 89th consecutive quarter of dividend payment in HCL Technologies’ history.
In contrast, Infosys declared a more conservative DPS of ₹43, translating to a payout ratio of 67%, largely due to its lower promoter holding of 14.6%, compared to HCL Technologies (61%) and TCS (71.8%).
Also read: HCLTech Q4 Results: FY26 revenue growth seen between 2-5%; full-year guidance achieved
This elevated capital return by TCS and HCL Technologies comes despite muted earnings growth in FY25. TCS posted a 6% increase in net profit to ₹48,553 crore, marking its slowest growth in three years, while HCL Technologies reported an 11% rise to ₹17,390 crore.
Notably, HCL Technologies’ dividend payout has grown at a compounded annual rate of 54% over the last five years, significantly outpacing its net profit CAGR of 9.5% during the same period.
Back in October 2021, HCL Technologies had laid out a capital allocation roadmap, committing to return at least 75% of its net income over FY22–FY26. The company has consistently exceeded that benchmark, with payout ratios of 88% in FY22 and FY23, rising further to 90% in FY24, and now to 93.5%.
However, it’s worth noting that these final dividends, declared alongside the Q4 results, are subject to shareholder approval at the respective Annual General Meetings (AGMs).
Despite the robust payout ratios, the Nifty IT Index has been the worst-performing sector in 2025, plunging 22% year-to-date, in stark contrast to the 2.2% gain posted by the benchmark Nifty50 index.
