Cap Gemini in play? Really?

Indian information technology (IT) firm Infosys (NASDAQ: INFY) has been a fast grower over the years. Of course, with relatively lower wage rates, it's easier to compete on contract bids.

But growth cannot go on forever. So might we see some big M&A deals in the sector?

Well, last week, there was a rumor that Infosys was thinking of buying Cap Gemini, which is a mega IT consulting firm in France. Investors were certainly taking things seriously as Cap Gemini's stock surged 6%.

To get some perspective on things, I interviewed Michael Guilbault, who is the senior analyst of professional services at Technology Business Research Inc.

His take? He thinks the probability of a deal is "close to zero."

Why? Guilbault points out that Infosys has focused on mostly small acquisition targets. Also, a key asset for Infosys is its culture and that could be vulnerable in a massive deal.

According to him:

"Recent history in the professional services industry shows integrating consultancies into the corporate fold is one of the most challenging kinds of mergers. Infosys isn't going to buy a bear and have to transform it into a gazelle; they'd rather just keep feeding the gazelle."

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.