UPDATE 2-Affiliated Computer profit beats Street view

* Q4 EPS ex. items 99 cts vs Street view 96 cts

* Q4 revenue $1.7 bln vs Street view $1.68 bln

* Sees Q1 revenue up 4 pct to 6 pct y/y

* Sees Q1 adj EPS 92 cts to 95 cts vs Street view 99 cts

* Shares flat after-hours (Adds forecast, CEO comment, earnings details, byline)

By Clare Baldwin

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Tech outsourcing company Affiliated Computer Services Inc (ACS.N) posted a slightly stronger than expected quarterly profit thanks to new business, mainly in healthcare and customer service.

"We are very optimistic about the future," Chief Executive Lynn Blodgett told Reuters in an interview. "We don't expect the economy to get a lot worse; we're not expecting it to get a lot better in the short term. We think we're kind of there at the bottom right now."

The company, which competes with Accenture Ltd (ACN.N) and Computer Sciences Corp (CSC.N) to provide data center management and payment processing, estimated revenue growth in the current quarter of 4 percent to 6 percent year over year, in line with the average analyst forecast of 5 percent.

The company said half the growth would come from acquisitions and half would be organic. Blodgett said Affiliated Computer is looking at acquisitions in eastern Europe and Asia.

Excluding items, the company forecast earnings per share of 92 cents and 95 cents, behind analysts' consensus estimate of 99 cents, in the current quarter.

The combined effects of a down economy and discounts Affiliated Computer gave to two of its largest customers are dragging revenue by about 4 percent, Blodgett said.

Affiliated Computer said it had doled out discounts to telecoms provider Sprint Nextel Corp (S.N), which accounts for about 4 percent of the company's revenue, and automaker General Motors Corp, which accounts for 2 percent of its sales.

Affiliated Computer signed additional business from Sprint as a result of the discounts, and expects to clear the lag from the GM discount in the next 3 to 4 quarters, Blodgett said.

Affiliated Computer reported net income in the fourth quarter ended June 30 of $97.5 million, or 99 cents a share, down from $98.63 million, or $1.01 a share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, Affiliated Computer posted a profit of $97.1 million, or 99 cents a share, compared with $93.10 million, or 95 cents a share, a year earlier. That was ahead of analysts' average estimate of $94.17 million, or 96 cents a share.

Revenue rose 6 percent from a year ago to $1.7 billion from $1.61 billion. Analysts had expected $1.68 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.

Shares in Dallas, Texas-based Affiliated Computer held steady in extended trading after closing down 1.6 percent at $46.92 on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Clare Baldwin; Editing by Carol Bishopric and Richard Chang)