Global professional services company Accenture (NYSE:ACN) is investing $3 billion over the next three years in its data and artificial intelligence (AI) practice, with plans to train more than 250,000 of its employees in AI. The information was disclosed by Accenture CEO Julie Sweet during an earnings call on Monday.
The investment is part of a larger strategy to expand the firm's AI capabilities across all industries. Accenture's data and AI practice aims to double its AI talent to 80,000 professionals through a combination of hiring, acquisitions, and training.
"We have already trained approximately 600,000 of our people in the fundamentals of AI," Sweet said during the earnings call. "And we are taking a further step to equip more than 250,000 people... and using new AI tools equitably, sustainably and without bias."
Sweet also highlighted the company's advancements in deep AI and gen AI specialization through investments in their AI academy. The company is progressing towards its goal of doubling their deeply skilled data and AI practitioners from 40,000 to 80,000.
The company is witnessing early days of monetisation for genAI deals, indicating a potential new revenue stream for the firm as it expands its focus on AI technologies.
Accenture, with a market cap of $194.45 billion according to InvestingPro's real-time metrics, has been consistently increasing earnings per share and has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years. This is a testament to the company's high earnings quality, where free cash flow exceeds net income. Accenture is also a prominent player in the IT Services industry, trading at a P/E ratio of 28.3 and with a revenue of $64111.75 million.
The company's commitment to AI is reflected in its recent performance. As per InvestingPro data, Accenture has seen a 1 year price total return of 18.26%, and its fair value stands at $297.21. This indicates a positive market response to the company's initiatives.
InvestingPro Tips highlight that the company operates with a high return on assets and its stock generally trades with low price volatility. However, 7 analysts have revised their earnings downwards for the upcoming period, indicating potential challenges ahead. Despite this, the company's strong fundamentals and strategic investments in AI position it well for future growth.
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