DUBLIN – Accenture PLC on Thursday reported fiscal first-quarter earnings that missed Wall Street expectations, but topped revenue forecasts.
Its shares fell more than 4 percent in midday trading.
The Dublin-based consulting company reported net income of $818.9 million, or $1.28 per share. That is down from $831.5 million, or $1.29 per share, a year ago. The company cited a higher effective tax rate for the decline.
The results missed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.31 per share.
The company posted revenue of $8.01 billion in the period, which topped Street forecasts. Eleven analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $7.9 billion.
For the current quarter ending in March, Accenture said it expects revenue in the range of $7.5 billion to $7.75 billion.
The company reaffirmed its full-year earnings guidance of $5.09 to $5.24 per share. It raised its revenue growth forecast for the year to 6 percent to 9 percent, up from previous guidance of 5 percent to 8 percent.
Its shares dropped $4.87, or 4.5 percent, to $104.19 in midday trading Thursday. Accenture shares are up 22 percent in the last 12 months.
_____
Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on ACN at http://www.zacks.com/ap/ACN
_____
Keywords: Accenture, Earnings Report
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
