Shares of information technology major Infosys declined 2.6% to their day’s low of Rs 1,027 on the BSE on Friday after global brokerages issued bearish calls on the stock after the company trimmed the upper end of its revenue growth guidance to 1.5%-3% in constant currency, while maintaining its operating margin outlook at 20-22%.

The lower revenue guidance indicates limited demand visibility despite strong deal wins and growing AI-led revenue. The IT sector continues to face slower discretionary spending, delayed client decision-making and pressure from AI-driven productivity gains.

The company reported a 12% year-on-year (YoY) rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 7,769 crore for the first quarter of FY27, compared with Rs 6,921 crore in the year-ago quarter. Revenue from operations increased 14% YoY to Rs 48,211 crore.

Also read: Infosys names Ashiss Kumar Dash to succeed Salil Parekh as CEO

Infosys shares: Buy, sell or hold?

JPMorgan downgraded Infosys to Neutral with a target price of Rs 1,050, saying the company’s Q1 revenue missed expectations sharply and its revenue guidance was cut significantly for the second consecutive quarter following a major miss in Q4. The brokerage said growth momentum has faced multiple setbacks, including weak demand, rising AI-led deflation, sometimes even during ongoing contracts, challenges with the Daimler contract and the termination of an Energy, Utilities, Resources and Services (EURS) contract. The new organic growth guidance of -0.2% to 1.3%, within an overall growth range of 1.5%-3%, points to a sharp slowdown that would require quarterly sequential growth of 0.4%-1.4% in a difficult environment, it added. While deal signings remain strong, AI-led deflation is keeping revenue conversion subdued, the brokerage further said.

Jefferies maintained its Hold recommendation on Infosys but cut the target price to Rs 1,020 from Rs 1,235, citing a worsening growth outlook that is now reflected in the stock price. The brokerage said the appointment of CEO-designate Ashiss Kumar Dash could provide some comfort around the leadership transition. Jefferies cut its estimates by 1%-3% and expects Infosys to deliver a recurring EPS CAGR of 5%.
Morgan Stanley maintained its Equal Weight rating on Infosys while cutting its target price to Rs 1,075 from Rs 1,112, implying a potential upside of 4%. The brokerage cited a weaker-than-expected quarter and a sharp reduction in guidance as the key reasons for the revision. While deal wins remained strong, revenue conversion was hurt by subdued discretionary spending. Morgan Stanley expects limited near-term valuation triggers and flat organic growth.
Citi maintained its Neutral rating on Infosys but cut the target price to Rs 1,065 from Rs 1,080. The brokerage said Q1 performance was weak after excluding the contribution from acquisitions, while deal wins and margins were key positives. However, volume growth and pricing fell short of management’s expectations, while commentary pointed to caution around discretionary spending. Citi also flagged high competitive intensity and the leadership transition as concerns, while remaining cautious on the IT sector amid AI-led deflation and the growing market share of captive centres.
Nomura has a target price of Rs 1,290 on Infosys, implying an upside of 23%. The CFO said the revised guidance reflects a volatile business environment, with the lower end factoring in further macroeconomic deterioration and the upper end assuming less improvement than previously expected. “Infosys is currently trading at an attractive valuation of 13x FY28F EPS of Rs 80.4,” it added.

Motilal Oswal Financial Services maintained its BUY rating on Infosys with a target price of Rs 1,170, implying a potential upside of 13.3% from current levels. The brokerage said Infosys lowered its FY27 revenue growth guidance amid macroeconomic uncertainty and weaker demand. It noted that Q1 revenue grew 1% quarter-on-quarter in constant currency terms, while margins remained stable. Strong deal wins, healthy cash flows and investments in artificial intelligence supported its positive view on the stock.

Read more: Infosys ADRs fall over 4% as Q1 revenue guidance cut overshadows profit growth

Nuvama retained its BUY rating on Infosys but lowered its target price to Rs 1,250 from Rs 1,650, implying an upside of over 21%. The brokerage attributed the cut to weaker-than-expected Q1FY27 growth, pricing pressure and soft demand in Europe, which also weighed on the company’s revenue guidance. It said stable margins at 21.1%, strong deal wins, increasing AI adoption and hiring plans remain positive for Infosys’ long-term growth outlook.

Emkay retained its BUY rating on Infosys and revised its target price to Rs 1,300 from Rs 1,350, indicating an upside of around 26%. The brokerage highlighted the improvement in EBIT margin to 21.1% and noted that AI Services accounted for 8.2% of Q1 revenue. While Infosys lowered its FY27 growth guidance to 1.5%-3%, Emkay identified growth in BFSI, continued AI momentum and the leadership transition as key positives.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Australia’s Spilt Milk festival has unveiled its full 2026 lineup, headlined by British artists Lewis Capaldi and Raye, marking Capaldi’s return to touring following a multiyear hiatus and confirming a significant relocation for the festival’s Victorian leg from Ballarat to Geelong.

Organizers revealed the complete artist bill this week following weeks of teaser announcements, with the festival set to run across four Australian cities in December.

Who’s on the bill

Lewis Capaldi and Raye will headline this year’s edition, with both artists appearing at Spilt Milk exclusively, meaning festival-goers will not be able to catch either performer at any other Australian tour stop this year. The pair are joined further down the bill by KETTAMA, Baby Keem, Maisie Peters, Remi Wolf and DMA’S, alongside a broader supporting lineup that includes Aleksiah, Borderline, F3MIII, Harry Hayes, Jigitz, Leyla Ebrahami, Miss Kaninna, Becca Hatch, Fat Papi, Pash, Samara Cyn, STÜM, The Moving Stills, The Terrys, TOBIAHS and Yes Boone.

This year’s lineup marks a notable shift in tone from 2025’s edition, which was headlined by Kendrick Lamar and Doechii. Last year’s festival drew strong reviews for its performances, with Rolling Stone Australia/New Zealand’s live review of the final Ballarat edition describing Lamar’s set as commanding even in a more relaxed mode, writing that “Kendrick in cruise control, however, is still Kendrick.”

Where and when

Spilt Milk 2026 will take place across four cities on consecutive weekends in December:

Saturday, Dec. 12, at Exhibition Park in Canberra; Sunday, Dec. 13, at the Gold Coast Sports Precinct; Saturday, Dec. 19, at Kardinia Park Stadium and Precinct in Geelong; and Sunday, Dec. 20, at Claremont Showground in Perth.

Presale and general ticket sales will be available through the festival’s official website, spilt-milk.com.au, with organizers indicating further ticketing details will be announced in the coming days.

A major relocation for the Victorian leg

The most significant change to this year’s festival is its new home in Victoria. After four editions held in Ballarat, Spilt Milk is relocating its Victorian stop to Kardinia Park Stadium and Precinct in Geelong, where it will remain based for at least the next five years, through 2030, according to the venue. The move is backed by Visit Victoria and the City of Greater Geelong.

Kicks Entertainment director and festival co-founder Ryan Sabet framed the relocation as a vote of confidence in the festival’s ability to bring major live music experiences outside of Australia’s capital cities. “Geelong is the perfect stage for the festival’s next five years,” Sabet said. “We want to thank Visit Victoria and the City of Greater Geelong for backing what Spilt Milk can do, their support means we can keep proving that a world-class festival doesn’t need to be in a capital city.”

Geelong Mayor Stretch Kontelj highlighted the anticipated economic benefits of hosting the festival, pointing to the influx of visitors it is expected to bring to the city each summer. “They’ll fill our hotels, our restaurants and our waterfront, while plenty of them will discover a city worth coming back to,” Kontelj said.

State Member for Geelong Christine Couzens also welcomed the move, emphasizing the value the festival could bring to young people in the region. “Bringing Spilt Milk to Geelong is a fantastic opportunity for our region, most importantly, for our young people,” Couzens said. “These kinds of experiences give them the chance to connect with friends, create lasting memories, and enjoy world-class music close to home. I’m proud that Geelong is attracting these major events.”

A festival with growing economic impact

According to figures released by Spilt Milk, the festival has contributed more than $46.7 million to the Victorian economy since 2019. Its 2025 edition alone generated an estimated $17.2 million, with roughly 34,100 attendees traveling in from outside the region. Overall festival attendance has grown substantially over the years, climbing from 28,602 attendees in 2019 to 38,729 in 2025.

A track record of major names

Since launching in 2016, Spilt Milk has built a reputation as one of Australia’s most closely watched regional touring festivals, having previously hosted artists including Kendrick Lamar, Doechii, Post Malone, Lorde, Childish Gambino, Flume, Steve Lacy, Dom Dolla, Latto and Khalid. The festival has also become known for consistently selling out across its host cities, with all four stops on its 2025 tour, Ballarat, Perth, Canberra and the Gold Coast, selling out.

The festival has additionally maintained a strong focus on supporting Australian artists throughout its lineups. Of the 43 acts that performed at last year’s festival, 33 were Australian, including 15 performers from Victoria and five artists based within 100 kilometers of the festival site.

A break from expectations

Ahead of this week’s official reveal, fans and festival watchers had spent weeks trying to predict the 2026 lineup based on cryptic teasers from organizers. While some predictions, including appearances from KETTAMA and Remi Wolf, proved accurate, much of the final bill, including the Capaldi and Raye headline slots, came as a surprise to those closely following the festival’s promotional campaign.

With the full lineup now confirmed and Geelong locked in as the festival’s new long-term Victorian home, attention now turns to ticket sales, expected to open through Spilt Milk’s official website in the coming days. Given the festival’s recent history of selling out multiple stops well ahead of their scheduled dates, organizers and fans alike are likely to be watching closely to see how quickly this year’s tickets move, particularly for the newly relocated Geelong show and the exclusive Australian appearances by both Capaldi and Raye.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul met military leaders to discuss six priorities, emphasizing military readiness, border security, disaster relief, voluntary service, defense industry development, and coordination against transnational crimes.

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Key Points

• Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul visited the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters, meeting with military and police leaders. He honored King Naresuan the Great, inspected the military honor guard, and received the Honorary Counter-Terrorism Operations Proficiency Insignia.
• Anutin outlined six policy priorities for the armed forces, focusing on military readiness, border security, disaster relief, and promoting voluntary military service over conscription.
• He emphasized developing Thailand’s defense industry through improved cooperation, increased domestic production, and enhanced international partnerships, urging the armed forces to utilize the Border Security Integration Center to combat transnational crimes.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul recently visited the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters, where he met with the Chief of Defense Forces, service commanders, the Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police, and senior military officers. During the visit, he paid tribute at the King Naresuan the Great Monument, inspected the military honor guard, and received the Honorary Counter-Terrorism Operations Proficiency Insignia.

Addressing the military leadership, Anutin detailed six policy priorities for the armed forces. The goals include improving military readiness through personnel development and modern equipment, enhancing border security through the Border Security Integration Center, expanding disaster relief operations, and advancing voluntary military service as a long-term alternative to compulsory conscription.

The premier also called for continued development of Thailand’s defense industry through greater cooperation with relevant sectors, increased domestic production, and broader international partnerships. In addition, Anutin instructed the armed forces to use the Border Security Integration Center to improve coordination in combating transnational crimes, including cybercrime, human trafficking, and narcotics trafficking.

Source : Thai PM Outlines Six Defense Priorities for Armed Forces

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As artificial intelligence use proliferates, Google, which is behind the Gemini AI platform, has announced an effort to examine how its products are being utilized.

Google asserted that “we as a society must work together to positively shape how AI impacts our lives, jobs, and economy. In order for this shared work to be effective, it is critical to have a rich understanding of how AI is being adopted and used in the economy. Society needs empirical insights and evidence-based research to inform decisions, initiatives, and actions.”

The company said that it “is launching the first iteration of the AI & Economy ATLAS (Activity, Task, Landscape and Adoption Study), an ongoing, large-scale, de-identified study of how people are using Google’s AI products and tools.”

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The Big Tech behemoth indicated it is using interactions with its AI for the analysis.

“ATLAS’s first dataset (v1.0) is built from 15 million aggregated and de-identified human-AI interactions across the Gemini App, AI Mode, and the Gemini API, which together are used by more than 1 billion people monthly. ATLAS v1.0 insights span more than 150 countries, 140 languages, 800 occupations, and 4,000 tasks; ATLAS is the most comprehensive look to date at how real people are using AI at scale,” Google noted.

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Part of a lengthy report on the analysis states that “we observe most conversational AI usage happens at home: over 86% of conversations occur outside formal work.

“In the workplace, we show that while AI adoption spans occupations covering just above 88% of U.S. employment, penetration remains shallow and overwhelmingly collaborative in nature, with end-to-end task automation limited in scope.

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“English accounts for only about a third of global conversations, and users do not show signs of systematically abandoning their native languages for complex professional tasks, as work and non-work activities show nearly identical language distributions,” the executive summary of the report notes.

Shares of Meesho declined as much as 5% to their day’s low of Rs 181.30 on the BSE on Friday after announcing that it expects on-year growth in net merchandise value (NMV) to dip in the July-September quarter, and plans to increase spending on acquiring new users as it builds up to the festive season.

The softer growth forecast stems from Meesho shifting its flagship Mega Blockbuster Sale to the October-December quarter this year from July-September quarter last year. The company said Q3 growth would consequently appear stronger and that comparisons should normalise when the two quarters are considered together.

The company posted a loss of Rs 133 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, compared with Rs 289 crore in the same quarter last year.

Marketplace revenue from operations rose 48% YoY to Rs 3,707 crore in Q1FY27. Meesho attributed the growth to better delivery conversion, aided by lower cancellations and reduced return-to-origin rates, along with higher platform monetisation.

What are analysts saying?

Citi maintained its Buy rating on Meesho and raised the target price to Rs 220 (16% upside) from Rs 210. The brokerage called it a solid quarter, with growth in line with expectations and strong marketplace pricing power. Meesho successfully passed on higher fulfilment costs arising from fuel and wage inflation, while take rates and contribution margins improved despite cost pressures. Although a shift in festive season timing could weigh on near-term performance, it is expected to support the following quarter. The brokerage also raised its estimates, citing Meesho’s ability to sustain efficiency gains.

Also read: Meesho expects slower Q2 growth, to raise festive marketing spend
Morgan Stanley maintained its Equal Weight rating on Meesho with a target price of Rs 190. The brokerage described the quarter as mixed, with losses broadly in line with expectations, while revenue fell slightly short of estimates. Profitability improved at a faster pace than revenue growth, helped by better delivery conversion and logistics optimisation, which drove an expansion in contribution margins. Meesho also managed to pass on fuel and wage cost pressures. However, the merchandise value miss pointed to slower-than-expected order growth. The company is also planning higher user acquisition spending ahead of the festive season, while a shift in the timing of festive sales could make the next quarter appear softer.
JM Financial maintained its Reduce rating on Meesho with a DCF-based June 2027 target price of Rs 185, implying a downside of 2.2%. The brokerage said management expects soft growth in Q2 as the Mega Blockbuster Sale has been pushed to Q3, compared with the same period last year. Advertising and promotion spending is also expected to rise sharply in Q2 ahead of the festive season in Q3.
While JM Financial tweaked its segmental estimates after factoring in the Q1 results, its consolidated FY27-29 estimates saw only marginal changes. The brokerage remains cautious as the stock trades at elevated valuations of around 45x FY29E EV/Adjusted EBITDA, leaving limited room for execution misses.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)