Accenture (ACN) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know
Accenture (ACN) closed at $251.31 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.65% move from the prior day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.15%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.28%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 3.16%.
Heading into today, shares of the consulting company had lost 10.92% over the past month, lagging the Business Services sector's loss of 5.63% and the S&P 500's loss of 5.39% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from Accenture as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be March 23, 2023. In that report, analysts expect Accenture to post earnings of $2.48 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 2.36%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $15.52 billion, up 3.12% from the year-ago period.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $11.45 per share and revenue of $64.25 billion, which would represent changes of +6.91% and +4.31%, respectively, from the prior year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Accenture. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. Accenture is currently a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Investors should also note Accenture's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 22.1. This represents a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 20.92.
Also, we should mention that ACN has a PEG ratio of 2.33. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. ACN's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.31 as of yesterday's close.
The Consulting Services industry is part of the Business Services sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 56, which puts it in the top 23% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow ACN in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
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Accenture PLC (ACN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
