Persistent's Nagarro deal faces near-term doubts, but long-term story stays strong: Piyush Pandey

Persistent Systems' announcement to acquire Nagarro for about $1.5 billion in debt triggered an 11% slide in Persistent's stock as investors weighed integration and margin risks. Centrum's Piyush Pandey called the sell-off an overreaction, noting the deal lifts combined revenue to nearly $2.9 billion and adds verticals like industrials, consumer, and public sector while deepening European presence. Nagarro's 13.2% EBITDA margin is expected to converge toward Persistent's levels with cost synergies, taking combined EBIT margin to 14-15% post-integration by year-end, with double-digit growth likely to resume thereafter.