(Reuters) – IT consulting firm Accenture Plc <ACN.N> beat analysts’ estimates for third-quarter revenue and profit on Thursday and forecast strong bookings for the current quarter, sending its shares up about 8%.
The company has shifted its focus to offering digital and cloud services, which include managing clients’ social media marketing strategies and helping them move to cloud, in a bid to boost margins.
New bookings grew 4% to $11 billion in the third quarter ended May 31, with digital, cloud and security-related services accounting for about 70% of them, Chief Financial Officer Kathleen McClure said in an earnings call with analysts.
Revenue slipped nearly 1% to $10.99 billion but managed to edge past analysts’ average estimates of $10.87 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Excluding items, the company earned $1.90 per share, beating analysts’ estimates of $1.85 per share.
The online consulting and service provider, however, narrowed its fiscal 2020 revenue growth forecast to between 3.5% and 4.5% amid the coronavirus-fueled economic slump. The prior forecast was for a growth of 3% to 6%.
Accenture, which competes with Cognizant <CTSH.O> and major Indian IT companies such as Tata Consultancy Services <TCS.NS> and Wipro <WIPR.NS>, expects foreign exchange rates to negatively impact its full-year results by 1.5% compared to fiscal year 2019.
Shares of the company were up at $217.19 in morning trade on Thursday.
(Reporting by Neha Malara; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
