All articles tagged with #accenture
The FBI attributes the recent breach of its jobs website to a contractor’s failure to install a critical security patch. Cyber-extortion group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility, alleging it stole 2-3 terabytes of data, including details on all FBI employees. The agency has removed the contractor, identified as working for Accenture, and arrested multiple suspects, including a leader detained in Jordan.
The FBI has removed an Accenture contractor after a failure to apply a security patch allowed the ShinyHunters hacking group to breach the bureau's job portal. The incident exposed sensitive personal data of nearly all FBI employees and over 8,000 local law enforcement officials. While the FBI attributes the breach to a third-party platform failure, internal sources describe it as an act of incompetence involving misconfigured internet-facing systems.
Seeking Alpha analysts upgraded Micron and Sandisk on AI-driven demand and pricing power, while downgrading ServiceNow and Accenture due to high valuations and weak organic growth. Other outlets confirm bullish sentiment for Micron, with price targets reflecting significant upside potential.
Accenture, Synopsys, United Therapeutics, and Vicor experienced significant price fluctuations during midday trading on October 1, 2026. CNBC reported these stocks as the most active movers, though specific reasons for the volatility were not detailed in the brief update.
Anthropic named Accenture as its first embedded evaluator to test safeguards and model behavior, a step in CEO Dario Amodei’s plan to slow AI development. Accenture's Faculty AI unit will embed staff to red-team and verify safety, with both companies pledging at least $1 billion over five years (Anthropic funding Accenture's work directly) and discussions with other evaluators continuing.
Accenture agreed to pay $25 million to settle DOJ allegations that it discriminated in hiring and promotion decisions for federal contracts by considering race and sex, in a case linked to the government’s Civil Rights Fraud Initiative. IBM and Deloitte have also settled for a combined ~$38.5 million this year, bringing total settlements to about $63.5 million across the three firms. The companies did not admit liability, and the settlements come amid a broader crackdown on DEI practices in federal contracting under the Trump administration.
Accenture stock opened about 18.9% lower after a mixed Q3 report: revenue rose 6% to $18.7B and EPS of $3.80 beat estimates, but full-year revenue growth guidance was cut from 4% to 3.5% and the company announced $4.18B in operational-technology cybersecurity acquisitions. Investors balk at the hefty spend amid slowing growth, with the shares down roughly 50% year-to-date and trading at cheap valuation multiples. Management argues AI’s revolution requires critical infrastructure and OT security, suggesting a longer-term upside despite today’s drop.
Accenture reported Q3 2026 revenue of $18.7B, up 6% in USD (3% local currency), with a 17% operating margin and EPS of $3.80, up 9%. Free cash flow was $3.6B; share repurchases totaled $1.2B and the dividend rose to $1.63 per share. New bookings were $19.3B, down 2% USD; Consulting revenue rose ~4% and Managed Services ~8%. Growth was driven by AI-related demand and strategic OT cybersecurity acquisitions (Dragos), plus mid-market expansion and the new Accenture Edge. A Middle East conflict reduced about $100M of consulting work, and some large managed‑services deals have been delayed into FY27. Macro uncertainty and longer EMEA decision cycles pose headwinds, but management remains confident in margin and EPS expansion and TAM growth from AI and security offerings, as well as ongoing shareholder returns.
Accenture’s stock fell about 20% after a quarter with higher revenue but below-bookings expectations; CEO Julie Sweet urged investors to be patient on AI, saying AI scaling will take time even as demand for large-scale AI transformations and the firm’s reinvention services grows and clients move from pilots to production.
Accenture plc (ACN) tumbled about 20% after signaling a softer near-term revenue outlook for Q3 (revenue guidance of $17.75–$18.4 billion vs. consensus around $18.47B). For the quarter ended May 31, bookings declined about 2% and revenue rose to $18.7B, just below analyst estimates, while adjusted EPS rose 9% to $3.80. CEO Julie Sweet attributed roughly $100 million in revenue reductions from the Middle East conflict and about $400 million in sales impact. The company maintained full-year local-currency revenue growth guidance of 3–4% and adjusted EPS of $13.78–$13.90. Accenture cited ongoing AI-driven reinvention demand but faces investor concern that AI could disrupt traditional consulting demand; the stock has fallen more than 50% this year amid similar pressure on peers. The firm also announced intended acquisitions (Dragos, runZero, NetRise) for about $4.2 billion in total.
Accenture shares fell almost 15% after lowering its fiscal 2026 revenue growth outlook to 3-4% in local currency (4-5% excluding roughly a 1% impact from its US federal business), even as the company posted a Q3 beat with adjusted EPS of $3.80 on $18.7 billion in revenue. Bookings were $19.3 billion; operating margin rose to 17.0%; free cash flow was $3.6 billion, with $2.2 billion returned to shareholders via buybacks and dividends. Management pointed to strong demand for large-scale reinvention projects and AI transformation, including 104 bookings of $100 million or more year-to-date, up 13%.
Accenture plans to acquire a majority stake in Dragos and 100% of runZero and NetRise for about $4.175 billion to create a unified, end-to-end OT cybersecurity platform. By combining Dragos’ OT threat detection with runZero’s exposure assessment and NetRise’s software-supply-chain and firmware visibility, the deal aims to secure the extended OT (xOT) environment against accelerating AI-driven threats and geopolitical risks. Dragos will operate as an independent unit, led by its co-founder CEO, and Accenture will leverage its relationships to scale adoption. Closing is expected in Aug–Sep 2026, with the trio projected to generate ~ $208 million in annual recurring revenue by mid-2026 and to be accretive to EPS and free cash flow over time.
States are paying Deloitte, Accenture, Optum and other contractors millions to update Medicaid and SNAP eligibility systems to implement Trump’s work requirements, a move likely to drive up upfront costs while analysts project about 7.5 million fewer people could be uninsured by 2034 and roughly 2.4 million losing food assistance; Wisconsin, Iowa, Kentucky, Illinois and Vermont are among states lining up multi-million-dollar contracts as the federal government foots most of the bill.
Accenture agreed to acquire Ookla (owner of Speedtest, Downdetector, RootMetrics, and Ekahau) from Ziff Davis for $1.2 billion in cash, with plans to embed Ookla’s data into offerings for telecoms, hyperscalers, and governments to optimize Wi‑Fi and 5G, enhance AI infrastructure resilience, improve fraud prevention, and enable analytics. Ookla reports ~250 million tests per month, ~430 employees, and 2025 revenue of $230.7 million with net income of $76.1 million. The deal is expected to close in coming months, with Accenture continuing to operate Ookla’s business as is.
Accenture is buying Ziff Davis's Connectivity division, which runs Downdetector and Speedtest (Ookla), for about $1.2 billion in cash. The move lets Ziff Davis focus on its core brands (IGN, Mashable, Everyday Health) while Accenture adds end-to-end network intelligence capabilities for AI-driven transformation. Downdetector and Speedtest will continue to operate under Ziff Davis during the transition, and the deal may take several months to finalize; Ookla’s growth in part came from 5G rollout and pandemic-era bandwidth demand.