Accenture Stock (ACN) Rallies Ahead of Earnings – Can the Momentum Continue?

Accenture's stock price (NYSE: ACN) has rallied 14% over the past month, with markets moving to a more bullish view ahead of this morning's earnings, due before market open.

The stock has demonstrated recent strength, a performance that outpaces the S&P 500‘s own gain of 1.57% on the period. This bullish movement occurs against a backdrop of a 21.5% decline since the start of the year, a significant underperformance. So what can we expect from Accenture today?

Analysts anticipate Accenture to deliver an EPS of $3.72 per share for the quarter, an improvement on the $3.59 delivered this time last year. Revenue is expected to come in at $18.53 billion, for a 4.76% Y/Y growth rate. Next year (FY27) is currently anticipated to show growth of 5.5% over the full year.

Accenture's 50-day simple moving average (SMA) stands at $244.94, while its 200-day SMA is at $283.86. The current price above the 50-day SMA confirm the short-term bullish momentum we see on charts, however, the price remaining below the 200-day SMA indicates that the longer-term bearish trend may still be in play.

Recent strategic partnerships have significantly influenced investor sentiment. The December 1 announcement of a collaboration with OpenAI to provide ChatGPT Enterprise access to a large segment of Accenture's IT professionals spurred a 2.8% increase in the stock's premarket trading. This partnership aims to capitalize on the rising demand for AI services across various industries.

Further bolstering its AI capabilities, Accenture expanded its partnership with Anthropic on December 9, forming a new business group and committing to train approximately 30,000 employees on Anthropic's Claude model. This move is Anthropic's largest deployment to date and is designed to accelerate AI adoption, particularly in regulated sectors such as financial services and healthcare.

However, it's important to consider past events that have weighed on Accenture's stock. The company's Q3 fiscal 2025 results, released in June 2025, showed an 8% year-over-year revenue growth to $17.7 billion, surpassing Wall Street estimates. Despite the revenue beat, a 6% decline in new bookings overshadowed the positive results, leading to a stock price drop of over 6%.

Analyst sentiment has also been mixed. In September 2025, Guggenheim lowered its price target for Accenture to $285 from $305, citing concerns over potential margin challenges. This downgrade occurred when the stock was trading near its 52-week low.

Organizational restructuring and leadership changes announced in June 2025, which emphasized Accenture's strategy to be the reinvention partner of choice for clients, also contributed to a 7% drop in the stock price on the same day as the Q3 results announcement.

Adding to the challenges, a former Accenture product manager was charged by the U.S. Department of Justice in December 2025 for fraud related to cloud security claims. While Accenture stated it had proactively reported the issue and fully cooperated with the investigation, such legal challenges can impact investor confidence.

On a more positive note, Accenture increased its quarterly dividend by 10% to $1.63 per share in September 2025, reflecting the company's commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Looking ahead, the market will be keenly focused on Accenture's commentary regarding future revenue and earnings guidance. Any revisions to previous forecasts will likely have a significant impact on the stock price.