Accenture (NYSE:ACN) is due to release its Q4 FY 2012 results and full year earnings on September 27. The company reported new bookings of $7.3 billion for Q3, which brings total revenues for the year to $23 billion. Revenues were up 9% in local currency y-o-y, with growth registered across its 5 operating groups and 3 geographical regions. Earnings per share (EPS) was reported as $1.03, which was an increase of 11% y-o-y. Accenture also confirmed its outlook for revenue growth of 10% to 12% for the year.

We expect the company to meet its outlook based on its strong growth in emerging markets and its position as the leading SAP implementation firm. Outsourcing growth in emerging markets will also play an important role in the upcoming earnings results while the slowdown in Europe may offset some of the growth.

See our full analysis on Accenture

Global Leader In SAP Implementation

Accenture is the leader in worldwide implementation of SAP solutions according to the report “IDC MarketScape: Worldwide SAP Implementation Ecosystem 2012 Vendor Analysis.” The report covered the twelve largest systems integrators for SAP applications and Accenture was on top compared to Capgemini, IBM, HPQ, PwC and Deloitte. ((IDC Marketscape, www.idc.com, July 2012)) The company employs nearly 36,500 SAP practitioners worldwide with delivery and support for a range of industry-specific business services. These include large-scale implementations covering Core ERP, supply chain management, analytics, HANA, mobility, and cloud solutions.^[1] We expect this to be one of the main drivers for Accenture’s revenues and the leadership position can lead to growth in Q4 FY 2012.

Leadership Position In BPO Market To Drive Outsourcing Revenues

Accenture was declared as the leader in business analytics, IT consulting and systems integration services by IDC and simultaneously placed in the “Leaders” quadrant of Gartner’s “Magic Quadrant” for comprehensive finance and accounting BPO. It recently closed deals with Nordea, the Indian Government and the Japan Pension Service in the IT services and management consulting space.

The IDC “MarketScape” report evaluated the offerings and capabilities of 10 information technology consulting providers and declared Accenture the leader in this space while the Gartner’s “Magic Quadrant” analyzed 18 providers of comprehensive finance and accounting BPO services. Some of the factors assessed by the study included quality of manpower, infrastructure, alliances, capital knowledge, capability to shift to a SaaS platform when required, end-to-end capability and the delivery network.^[2] We expect the IT consulting and BPO business lines to drive expansion and growth in emerging markets.

Exploring New Business Lines

Last month Accenture acquired two companies: NewsPage, a Singapore-based mobility software provider, and Octagon Research Solutions, a provider of clinical and regulatory information management solutions for the pharmaceutical industry.

NewsPage is a provider of integrated distributor management software and mobility software for the consumer goods industry, mainly targeting emerging economies. This acquisition is aimed at bolstering Accenture’s CAS (Consumer Goods and Services) software platform that helps the sales process of consumer goods companies. This acquisition will help Accenture capture greater market share in the software market in emerging economies.^[3]

The acquisition of Octagon will help Accenture better cater to its pharmaceutical clients by achieving efficient global regulatory submissions. This will enable companies to get their drugs in the research pipeline quickly to the market and at lower cost. Efficient regulatory compliance also ensures the drugs meet all necessary standards, ensuring safety. The services offered will range from clinical data collection to regulatory submissions management and will also help extend Accenture’s BPO services to the pharmaceutical industry.^[4] We can expect a sizable jump in Accenture’s outsourcing revenues from clinical research and pharmaceutical companies because of this acquisition in the near future.

We currently have a $71 Trefis Price Estimate for Accenture which is nearly 10% higher than its current market price.

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