Global consulting and technology services giant Accenture reported stronger-than-expected financial results for its second fiscal quarter, driven by accelerating demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud services. The company posted adjusted earnings of $2.93 per share, beating analyst estimates of $2.84 and rising from $2.82 a year earlier. Revenue climbed about 8% year over year to $18.044 billion, also ahead of expectations of $17.84 billion.
Managed services, now accounting for 51% of total revenue, led the growth, underscoring a strategic shift toward recurring, outcome-based engagements. Operational efficiency improved significantly, with workforce utilization rising to 93% from 91% and operating margins expanding to 13.8% from 13.5% a year earlier. Gross profit reached $5.459 million, supported by cost control measures.
A key highlight was the record quarterly bookings of $22.1 billion, signaling robust and sustained client demand for large-scale digital and AI transformation projects. "We're accelerating our critical work with clients to scale advanced AI across their enterprise, and we're seeing strong AI-driven growth," said Chief Executive Julie Sweet. The company expects to more than double its work with AI and data ecosystem partners, including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Palantir.
Despite the strong results, Accenture's stock initially closed down 1.77% at $195.15 on the earnings news, which analysts attributed to short-term profit-taking. However, shares later rose 5.7% in a subsequent trading session, defying a broader tech-sector selloff. The company raised the lower end of its fiscal-year revenue growth forecast to 3%-5% in local currency, up from 2%-5%, but flagged potential headwinds including a projected 1% revenue impact from reduced federal spending.
