Accenture cuts full-year outlook, shares down

REUTERS - Outsourcing and consulting services provider Accenture Plc cut its full-year outlook and reported third-quarter revenue below analysts' estimate as its consulting income dropped 2 percent.

Accenture shares were down 6 percent at $75.30 in extended trading on Thursday.

The company said it now expects adjusted earnings of $4.18 to $4.22 per share on revenue growth of 3 to 4 percent in local currency for the year ending August 31.

The outlook assumed a negative currency impact of 1.7 percent, up from its 1 percent expected earlier.

Accenture in March had forecast adjusted annual earnings of $4.24 to $4.32 per share on revenue growth below the midpoint of the 5-8 percent range that it had previously expected.

The company recorded consulting net revenue of $3.9 billion in the three months ended May 31. It had said in March that it expects the business to return to growth.

Outsourcing net revenue rose 4 percent to $3.3 billion in the quarter.

"Outsourcing adds resilience to the story," Josh Olson, technology analyst for Edward Jones told Reuters.

Accenture's results could have been worse without the strength in outsourcing, he said.

Net revenue rose 0.6 percent to $7.2 billion.

Net income rose to $874.1 million, or $1.21 per share, in the third quarter, from $762.8 million, or $1.03 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company earned $1.14 per share.

Analysts on average had expected earnings of $1.13 per share on revenue of $7.42 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Accenture shares closed at $80.22 on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday. (Reporting by Sruthi Ramakrishnan in Bangalore; Editing by Joyjeet Das)