UPDATE: Citigroup Reiterates on EPAM Systems Following Solid Results

In a report published Friday, Citigroup analyst Ashwin Shirvaikar reiterated a Buy rating on EPAM Systems (NYSE: EPAM), and raised the price target from $46.00 to $50.00.

In the report, Citigroup noted, “EPAM had solid results, much better than expected both on the top- and bottom-line – we believe this was likely due to a ‘budget flush' similar to one EPAM benefited from last year. Even more important, the initial guide of 21%-23% revenue growth is quite solid, indicating that factors such as the Ukraine unrest (a key concern for investors) has not affected overall demand – we do believe there is a benefit modeled by the company for a higher onsite presence, one indicator of which is the higher expected tax rate in 2014.

"Note the company has been conservative the last couple of years. The one thing to point out is that between the higher tax rate, higher share count and continued investments, we look for roughly in-line EPS vs. expectations. Of course, we do expect margins to rise over time and this is reflected in our increased forward estimates. The secular theme remains robust in EPAM, as we have stated before. Buy EPAM.”

EPAM Systems closed on Thursday at $41.23.