Infosys Technologies to Join Nasdaq-100

The Nasdaq Stock Market is including Infosys among its top 100 companies as part of an annual revision to the Nasdaq-100 index.

In a statement issued Sunday, Infosys -- headquartered in the southern Indian city of Bangalore -- said its listing on Nasdaq's benchmark index would bring more global visibility to the company, which already is one of India's best known brands abroad.

Other Nasdaq-100 names -- chosen mostly on the basis of their market worth -- include Microsoft Corp., Google Inc. and Dell Inc.

Infosys' inclusion follows the company's secondary offering of 30 million American Depository Shares worth $1.6 billion. The offering, which was closed last month, involved the sale of shares held by investors on Indian stock exchanges to investors in the U.S.

About 19 percent of Infosys shares are now traded on Nasdaq.

Infosys, which writes software for companies such as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and J. C. Penney Corp., was the first Indian firm to be listed on the Nasdaq when it was initially offered in 1999.

Long-haul telecommunications carrier Level 3 Communications Inc. of Broomfield, Colo. and biotechnology company Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Cambridge, Mass., are also joining the index on Monday.

Leaving the index are: JDS Uniphase Corp., a maker of optical telecommunications gear based in San Jose, Calif.; respiratory services provider Lincare Holdings Inc. of Clearwater, Fla.; and retailer Urban Outfitters Inc. of Philadelphia.