Technology outsourcing and consulting firm Accenture has reported net revenue of $5.57bn in the third quarter of fiscal 2010, up 8% in US dollars and 4% in local currency compared to $5.15bn for the same period last year.
Consulting net revenues rose by 9% to $3.22bn while outsourcing net revenue increased by 7% to $2.35bn compared to the same period a year ago.
The company posted an operating income of $804m during the quarter, an increase of 10% compared to $732m in the same period last year. Gross margin for the second quarter rose by 20 basis points to 14.4%. The company had new bookings of $6.43bn, with consulting bookings of $3.18bn and outsourcing bookings of $3.25bn.
For the quarter ended February 28, 2010, the selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses were $1.12bn, operating cash flow was $961m and property and equipment additions were $58m. The company’s effective tax rate for the third quarter was 29.8%, as against 28.2% in the same period last year.
The communications and high tech group division’s net revenue was up 2% to $1.18bn, resources group was up 11% to $1bn, while the health and public service group increased 3% to $927m. Financial services group division rose by 12% to $1.15bn while products group was up by 14% to $1.3bn.
Geographically, revenue from Americas increased by 11% to $2.5bn while Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) was up by 4% to $2.4bn. Revenue from Asia Pacific region increased by 16% to $625m.
Accenture expects net revenue for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010 to be in a range of $5.15bn to $5.35bn. For the full fiscal year 2010, the company expects diluted EPS to be in the lower half of its previously guided range of $2.61 to $2.69 and operating margin to be 13.5%.
