Accenture plc (ACN - Free Report) is one of world’s leading providers of management consultancy, technology and outsourcing services. The company is steadily gaining traction in its outsourcing business primarily backed by a rise in demand for technology to improve operating efficiencies and save costs.

Furthermore, considering the growing need for digital marketing, we commend Accenture’s efforts to enhance its digital marketing capabilities through acquisitions which should positively impact fourth-quarter results.

However, increasing competition from Cognizant Technology Solutions and International Business may temper its growth prospects to some extent. Additionally, Accenture’s broad European exposure and a cautious spending environment are likely to have a negative impact on the to-be-reported quarter results. Due to this, investors are eagerly awaiting Accenture’ earnings report in order to set the record straight and to give some guidance on where this company is heading.

Accenture’s consensus estimate for the to-be-reported quarter has moved downward in the last 60 days. However, Accenture have a decent history when it comes to recent earnings reports as the stock has beaten estimates in all the last four quarters, making for an average surprise of approximately 2.61%.

Accenture PLC Price and EPS Surprise

Accenture PLC Price and EPS Surprise | Accenture PLC Quote

Currently, Accenture has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), but that could definitely change following the company’s earnings report which was just released. We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just-revealed announcement below:

Earnings: Accenture beats on earnings. Our consensus called for EPS of $1.47 per share, and the company reported non-GAAP EPS of $1.48 per share.

Revenue: Revenues surpassed. Accenture posted revenues of $9.149 billion, compared to our consensus estimate of $9.007 billion.

Key Stats: The company witnessed year over year growth in revenue, primarily aided by an increase in Consulting and Outsourcing revenues.

1Q18 Outlook: For 1Q18, Accenture expects revenue to be in the range of $9.10 billion to $9.35 billion.