Business consulting giant Accenture (ACN -2.25%) reported results early Thursday morning. The report covered the second quarter of fiscal year 2018, and showed solid growth across all of Accenture's business lines and geographic regions.
Here's a closer look at some key details from this report.
Accenture's second-quarter results: The raw numbers
|
Metric |
Q2 2018 |
Q2 2017 |
Year-Over-Year Change |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Net revenue |
$9.59 billion |
$8.32 billion |
15% |
|
Net income attributable to Accenture |
$901 million |
$877 million |
3% |
|
GAAP earnings per share (diluted) |
$1.37 |
$1.33 |
3% |
Data source: Accenture.
Excluding the impact of unique non-cash tax charges in this quarter, related to the sweeping tax code revision, Accenture's earnings would stop at $1.58 per diluted share. That's a 19% increase over the year-ago period's $1.33 per share.
What happened with Accenture this quarter?
In the second quarter, Accenture delivered positive sales growth in all five of its reportable segments. The communications, media, and technology division led the pack with a 15% year-over-year revenue boost, while health and public service trailed with a 6% sales improvement.
In geographic terms, North America and Europe saw 8% and 10% annual sales growth, respectively. Accenture's so-called growth markets earned their name with a 15% sales jump, though that category represents just 18% of total sales and remains Accenture's smallest geographic region.
"The New," which is an umbrella term for Accenture's cloud computing, information security, and digital services, showed "strong double-digit growth." These operations accounted for 55% of Accenture's overall sales in the second quarter, right in line with the first-quarter reading.
Image source: Getty Images.
What management had to say
Our excellent performance in the second quarter and year to date demonstrate that we have the right growth strategy and we are executing extremely well. With 10% revenue growth in local currency in the first half, we continue to grow much faster than the market, and indeed we have outperformed our basket of competitors for now 16 consecutive quarters, four full years." -- CEO Pierre Nanterme
Nanterme, in a conference call with analysts, went on to highlight some recent contract wins for digital media services and Asian banking mergers, before turning back to a culture of innovation that informs everything Accenture does:
To bring even more innovation to clients, we are building a global network of more than 100 work-at centers, where we collaborate with clients and co-create innovative digital solutions. And we're expanding this network to be even closer to clients. In the last few months, we opened new innovation hubs in Zurich, Tokyo, Boston, and Columbus. We launched a newly equipped studio in Madrid, and we opened a new industry IoT Innovation Center in Modena, Italy.
Looking ahead
Management expects Accenture's revenue growth to moderate somewhat in the second half of 2018, resulting in a full-year growth rate of roughly 8% in local currency. To give you a point of reference, sales increased 10% in the first half when counted in local currencies. More specifically, third-quarter sales should land near $10 billion, give or take $100 million.
On the bottom line, full-year earnings should rise approximately 13% in 2018 and land near $6.65 per diluted share. This estimate is an adjusted figure, excluding the impact of one-time tax charges in the second quarter. Accenture did not provide any specific earnings target for the third quarter.
Beyond that, Accenture will continue to lean on The New, focusing its efforts and budgets on growing operations under that growing and profitable umbrella.
