The Biggest Loser: Accenture Slides 4% Disappointing sales guidance caused Accenture to be the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500 today. By Ben Levisohn Updated June 22, 2017 4:27 p.m. ET Accenture(ACN) tumbled to the bottom of theS&P 500today after it met earnings forecasts butpredicted declining marginsand trimmed its fourth-quarter sales growth. ILLUSTRATION:GETTY IMAGES Accenture dropped 4% to $122.08 today, while the S&P 500 dipped 0.1% to 2,434.50. Susquehanna's James Friedmancontends Accenture is "navigating well through choppy waters." He explains: The company trimmed revenue growth for FY17 to 6-7% CC, down from 6-8% prior. FX is expected to be a -1% headwind vs. the prior -2% headwind. Non-GAAP EPS for the year is now expected to be $5.84 - $5.91 (vs. $5.70 - $5.87 prior). Operating margin is expected to be 14.8% (vs. 14.7% - 14.9% prior), while the company’s tax rate is expected to be 22.5% - 23.5%.Despite calling out a slowdown in the overall professional services marketplace, Accenture’s diverse business model looks stable. Weakness in Strategy/Consulting and soft key verticals such as Healthcare and Banking were offset by strong numbers in Application Services, Products, and CMT (Media). We are trimming 2018, but remain positive pending a recovery in core parts of Consulting. Accenture's market capitalization fell to $80.8 billion today from $84.2 billion yesterday. from Barron's
Accenture has a strong balance sheet. As of February 28, 2018, the company had cash and cash equivalents of approximately $3.6 billion and long-term debt of just $26 million. This enables the company to pursue strategic acquisitions and invest in growth initiatives. What's more, its quarterly revenue growth was 11.80%. I think the ACN will perform better if the company's strategies work. For safety, it is better to wait for a while to see how it goes now.