Key Highlights

● Fourth-quarter revenue was $18.68 billion, up 6% in US dollars.

● Record 141 quarterly client bookings of $100 million or more.

● Full-year revenue reached $74.18 billion with new bookings of $84.54 billion.

● Accenture returned $11.5 billion to shareholders during fiscal 2026.

Record large bookings

Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) published its fourth-quarter and full-year fiscal 2026 results on 1 October 2026, covering the year ended 31 August. Fourth-quarter revenue was $18.68 billion, up 6% in US dollars and 7% in local currency, and new bookings were $22.17 billion. The company said it reached a new high of 141 quarterly client bookings of $100 million or more, which is a useful measure of demand for large transformation programmes. Revenue grew in every geographic region in the fourth quarter, with Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific contributing $9.43 billion, $6.58 billion and $2.67 billion respectively in the fourth quarter.

Business and sector position

Accenture is a professional services group that provides consulting, technology and managed services to corporate and government clients worldwide. Its work covers strategy, cloud and data migration, cybersecurity, application development and outsourced operations. Fiscal 2026 consulting revenue was $36.88 billion, up 5%, and managed services revenue was $37.30 billion, up 8%, according to the filing. The company competes with global consulting firms, technology services providers and in-house client teams. Industry exposure is broad: Communications, Media and Technology grew fastest during the year, up 11% to $12.67 billion, while Products was the largest group in the fourth quarter at $5.56 billion.

What the latest report showed

Full-year revenue was $74.18 billion, up 6% in US dollars and 5% in local currency, and full-year new bookings were $84.54 billion, up 5%. Advanced artificial intelligence bookings were not reported separately. Fourth-quarter GAAP diluted earnings per share were $3.29, up 46%, while full-year GAAP earnings per share were $13.56, up 12%, and adjusted earnings per share were $13.97, up 8%. Headcount was approximately 814,000 people. Fourth-quarter bookings rose 4% in US dollars and 5% in local currency, and full-year bookings rose 3% in local currency, which is slower than revenue growth over the same period.

Financial performance and context

Full-year GAAP operating margin was 15.4% and adjusted operating margin was 15.8%. Free cash flow was $11.62 billion for the year, including $2.85 billion in the fourth quarter. Accenture paid $3.99 billion in dividends and repurchased $7.5 billion of shares, totalling $11.5 billion returned to shareholders, up 38%. The board declared a quarterly dividend of $1.71 per share, payable on 13 November 2026, a 5% increase. Chief executive Julie Sweet said revenue exceeded the company's fourth-quarter guidance range. The fourth-quarter GAAP figure of $3.29 was up 46% on the prior-year GAAP result but 9% above prior-year adjusted earnings of $3.03, so the base used matters. Remaining repurchase authority was about $6.9 billion at the year end.

Risks and uncertainties

Consulting demand depends on corporate budgets and can slow when clients defer discretionary projects. Artificial intelligence may change how services work is priced and delivered, with uncertain effects on revenue per project. The outlook spans a wide range: Accenture expects fiscal 2027 revenue growth of 3% to 6% in local currency, and first-quarter revenue of $18.95 billion to $19.60 billion, or 2% to 6% growth. Currency movements and client concentration by sector could affect results. Full-year operating income was $11.41 billion on a GAAP basis, compared with $11.71 billion on an adjusted basis, so adjustments matter when comparing years.

Fiscal 2027 guideposts

For fiscal 2027, Accenture guides to an operating margin of 15.9% to 16.1% and GAAP diluted earnings per share of $14.39 to $14.81, up 6% to 9%. It expects free cash flow of $11.0 billion to $11.8 billion and capital return of at least $9.5 billion. Readers should watch the first-quarter report, the conversion of bookings into revenue, margin delivery and whether the company begins reporting advanced artificial intelligence activity separately.