Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Accenture Reports Third-Quarter Fiscal 2009 Results

Operating income is $732 million; operating margin expands to 14.2% --

-- Company delivers free cash flow of $971 million and raises free cash flow outlook for full fiscal year --

-- New bookings of $6.57 billion include consulting bookings of $3.21 billion --

Accenture (NYSE: ACN | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2009, ended May 31, 2009, with net revenues of $5.15 billion, in line with the company's guided range. Net revenues declined 16 percent in U.S. dollars and 4 percent in local currency compared with the third quarter last year, reflecting a foreign-exchange impact of negative 12 percent. Diluted earnings per share were $0.68.

Operating income was $732 million, a decrease of 15 percent, primarily due to significant negative foreign-exchange impact, while operating margin expanded 10 basis points, to 14.2 percent.

New bookings for the quarter were $6.57 billion, with consulting bookings of $3.21 billion and outsourcing bookings of $3.36 billion, bringing new bookings for the first three quarters of fiscal 2009 to $18.36 billion.

William D. Green, Accenture's chairman & CEO, said, "In the third quarter we delivered strong overall results, considering the difficult economic environment. Our people have raised their game on behalf of our clients, our company and our shareholders. While we were challenged in terms of top-line growth, revenues were within our guided range, and we delivered operating income of $732 million, expanded operating margin to 14.2 percent and delivered solid earnings per share. In addition, our significant new bookings show momentum even in this economic headwind, and we continue to generate very strong cash flow.

"We are managing our business with tremendous discipline and are staying focused on helping clients adapt to their changing needs. We have continued making important investments to take advantage of future growth opportunities and market rebound. We remain well-positioned to deliver outstanding value to our clients and our shareholders."

Financial Review

Revenues before reimbursements ("net revenues") for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 were $5.15 billion, compared with $6.10 billion in the third quarter of fiscal 2008, a decrease of 16 percent in U.S. dollars and 4 percent in local currency. Net revenues for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 reflect a foreign-exchange impact of negative 12 percent.

-- Consulting net revenues for the quarter were $2.95 billion, a decrease of 20 percent in U.S. dollars and 9 percent in local currency compared with the third quarter of fiscal 2008.

-- Outsourcing net revenues were $2.19 billion, a decrease of 9 percent in U.S. dollars and an increase of 3 percent in local currency compared with the third quarter of fiscal 2008.

Diluted EPS for the quarter were $0.68, compared with $0.74 in the third quarter last year, a decrease of $0.06, broken down as follows:

-- a $0.03 increase from a lower share count;

-- a $0.02 increase from a lower effective income tax rate compared with the rate in the third quarter last year;

offset by:

-- a $0.02 decrease from lower revenue and operating income in local currency; and

-- a $0.09 decrease from unfavorable foreign-exchange rates compared with the third quarter last year.

Operating income for the third quarter decreased 15 percent, to $732 million, or 14.2 percent of net revenues, compared with $862 million, or 14.1 percent of net revenues, for the third quarter of fiscal 2008. This reflects an operating-margin expansion of 10 basis points.

Gross margin (gross profit as a percentage of net revenues) was 32.5 percent, compared with 31.5 percent for the third quarter last year, an expansion of 100 basis points. The increase was driven by improved overall outsourcing contract profitability.

Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses for the third quarter were $935 million, or 18.2 percent of net revenues, compared with $1,056 million, or 17.3 percent of net revenues, for the third quarter last year. The increase in SG&A as a percentage of net revenues was due to higher selling costs as a percentage of net revenues and to general and administrative costs declining at a lower rate than that of net revenues.

The company's effective tax rate for the third quarter was 28.2 percent. This compares with an effective tax rate of 30.8 percent for the third quarter last year. The lower tax rate in the third quarter this year was primarily a result of final determinations of prior-year tax liabilities recorded in the quarter.

Income before minority interest for the third quarter was $537 million, compared with $608 million for the same period of fiscal 2008, a decrease of 12 percent.

Operating cash flow for the third quarter was $1,015 million, and property and equipment additions were $44 million. Free cash flow, defined as operating cash flow net of property and equipment additions, was $971 million. For the same period last fiscal year, operating cash flow was $1,080 million; property and equipment additions were $66 million; and free cash flow was $1,014 million.

Accenture's total cash balance at May 31, 2009, was $4.00 billion, compared with $3.60 billion at Aug. 31, 2008. Days services outstanding, or DSOs, were 34 at May 31, 2009, compared with 37 at Aug. 31, 2008.

Utilization for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 was 83 percent, compared with 85 percent in the same quarter last year. Attrition for the quarter was 8 percent on an annualized basis, compared with 16 percent in the third quarter last year.

New Bookings

New bookings for the third quarter were $6.57 billion. This reflects a negative 13 percent foreign-currency impact when compared with new bookings in the third quarter last year.

-- Consulting new bookings were $3.21 billion, or 49 percent of total new bookings.

-- Outsourcing new bookings were $3.36 billion, or 51 percent of total new bookings.

Net Revenues by Operating Group

Accenture's business continues to be affected by the continuing global economic downturn. As a result, all of the company's operating groups with the exception of Public Service experienced a decline in consulting revenues in local currency compared with the third quarter last year. At the same time, all of the company's operating groups with the exception of Financial Services grew outsourcing revenues in local currency compared with the third quarter last year, although generally at a slower rate than in prior quarters.

Net revenues by operating group for the third quarter were as follows:

-- Communications & High Tech: $1,156 million, compared with $1,388 million for the third quarter of fiscal 2008, a decrease of 17 percent in U.S. dollars and 5 percent in local currency. Consulting revenues declined 15 percent in local currency and outsourcing revenues increased 7 percent in local currency.

-- Financial Services: $1,027 million, compared with $1,303 million for the same period last year, a decrease of 21 percent in U.S. dollars and 9 percent in local currency. Consulting revenues declined 13 percent in local currency and outsourcing revenues declined 2 percent in local currency.

-- Products: $1,308 million, compared with $1,611 million for the year-ago period, a decrease of 19 percent in U.S. dollars and 8 percent in local currency. Consulting revenues declined 16 percent in local currency and outsourcing revenues increased 5 percent in local currency.

-- Public Service: $745 million, compared with $756 million for the year-ago period, a decrease of 2 percent in U.S. dollars and an increase of 8 percent in local currency. Consulting revenues increased 12 percent in local currency and outsourcing revenues increased 2 percent in local currency.

-- Resources: $905 million, compared with $1,038 million for the same period of fiscal 2008, a decrease of 13 percent in U.S. dollars and an increase of 1 percent in local currency. Consulting revenues declined 1 percent in local currency and outsourcing revenues increased 4 percent in local currency.

Net Revenues by Geographic Region

Net revenues by geographic region in the third quarter were as follows:

-- Americas: $2,265 million, compared with $2,527 million for the third quarter of fiscal 2008, a decrease of 10 percent in U.S. dollars and 6 percent in local currency.

-- Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA): $2,342 million, compared with $3,032 million for the third quarter of fiscal 2008, a decrease of 23 percent in U.S. dollars and 5 percent in local currency.

-- Asia Pacific: $539 million, compared with $543 million for the year-ago period, a decrease of 1 percent in U.S. dollars and an increase of 10 percent in local currency.

Share Repurchase Activity

During the third quarter of fiscal 2009, Accenture repurchased or redeemed 10.0 million shares for a total of $283 million, including $113 million for 4.1 million shares repurchased on the open market. Accenture's total remaining share repurchase authority at May 31, 2009, was approximately $1.3 billion.

At May 31, 2009, Accenture had approximately 733 million total shares outstanding, including 614 million Accenture Ltd Class A common shares and minority holdings of 119 million shares (Accenture SCA Class I common shares and Accenture Canada Holding, Inc. exchangeable shares).

Business Outlook

Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2009

Accenture expects net revenues for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009 to be in the range of $5.0 billion to $5.2 billion. This range assumes a foreign-exchange impact of negative 8 percent compared with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008.

Fiscal Year 2009

Accenture continues to target new bookings for fiscal 2009 in the range of $23 billion to $25 billion.

Accenture has narrowed its range for net revenue growth for the full fiscal year and expects net revenue growth to be flat to slightly positive in local currency.

Accenture expects operating margin for the full fiscal year to be at the lower end of its previously guided range of 13.4 percent to 13.7 percent, representing a minimum year-over-year expansion of 50 basis points.

The company is updating its outlook for diluted EPS for the full fiscal year to the range of $2.67 to $2.70. The company's previous range was $2.60 to $2.67.

Accenture now expects operating cash flow to be $2.65 billion to $2.85 billion; property and equipment additions to be $250 million; and free cash flow to be in the range of $2.4 billion to $2.6 billion. The company's previous outlook was $2.57 billion to $2.77 billion for operating cash flow; $315 million for property and equipment additions; and $2.25 billion to $2.45 billion for free cash flow.

The company now expects its annual effective tax rate to be in the range of 27 percent to 29 percent. The company's previous range was 29 percent to 31 percent.

Conference Call and Webcast Details

Accenture will host a conference call at 4:30 p.m. EDT today to discuss its third-quarter fiscal 2009 financial results. To participate, please dial +1 ... [+1 (612) 288-0340 outside the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada] approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled start of the call. The conference call will also be accessible live on the Investor Relations section of the Accenture website at www.accenture.com.

A replay and podcast of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Accenture website beginning at 7:00 p.m. EDT today, Thursday, June 25, and continuing until Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009. The replay will also be available via telephone by dialing +1 (800) 475-6701 [+1 (320) 365-3844 outside the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada] and entering access code 103988 from 7:00 p.m. EDT today, Thursday, June 25, through 11:59 p.m. EDT Thursday, July 9, 2009.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world's most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. With approximately 177,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, the company generated net revenues of US$23.39 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2008. Its home page is www.accenture.com.

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