NEW YORK, Feb 25, 2026, 06:28 PM EST — After-hours
- Accenture slid 2.7% to finish at a new 52-week low, briefly dipping to around $189.
- Citi cut its price target on Accenture to $215, maintaining a neutral rating.
- Accenture is picking up a company in Brazil and launching an innovation hub in Riyadh, all while services stocks wrestle with the ongoing AI debate.
Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) slid 2.7% to finish at $191.51 on Wednesday, scraping a fresh 52-week low of $188.73 during the session. Volume was heavy—roughly 13.9 million shares traded. ACN has shed about 32% in the last month, even as the S&P 500 posted gains. (Investing.com)
This is significant: Accenture is at the heart of the market’s ongoing debate over “agentic” AI—software designed to handle work tasks with little human oversight. Rapid adoption of these tools might spark a wave of major integration deals. They also have the potential to reshape what companies hire consultants for, and how much they spend on outside help.
Accenture is betting heavily on AI to drive growth, though the stock price suggests investors remain unconvinced by the pitch. For now, traders are picking apart fresh deal announcements while also weighing the risk that automation could eventually chip away at segments of the services business.
Citigroup has cut its price target on Accenture to $215, down from $266, while maintaining a neutral stance, MT Newswires reported. A price target reflects where analysts think the stock might trade in the next year. (MarketScreener)
Accenture announced Tuesday it’s buying Verum Partners, a capital projects management firm out of Brazil, as it looks to boost its project work in the region. “AI-enabled project management models offer organizations opportunities to get to grips with delays and overspend,” said Rodolfo Eschenbach, who heads Accenture’s Latin America market unit. No financial terms were provided. (Accenture Newsroom)
The company kept up its AI drumbeat in the Gulf, touting the launch of a Connected Innovation Center at its Saudi headquarters in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District. The new site, according to a press release, will take projects from trial runs to larger-scale adoption. “Our expansion in Riyadh is a testament to our belief that Saudi Arabia is at the forefront of the global AI renaissance,” said Dr. Majid Al Tuwaijjri, Accenture’s country managing director for Saudi Arabia. (Zawya)
IT Pro says OpenAI is bringing Accenture into its “Frontier Alliances” initiative, joining Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey, and Capgemini. The group’s focus: helping clients shape strategy, handle system integration, and overhaul workflows as they bring in AI agents. “Business transformation requires more than great models – it requires end-to-end execution across technology, data, security, and change management,” Accenture chair and CEO Julie Sweet said. (IT Pro)
Software and services stocks have been caught in the AI crosscurrents. Anthropic rolled out new plug-ins with LSEG, FactSet, Slack from Salesforce, and DocuSign. According to Reuters, a legal plug-in the company released last month was enough to spark an $830 billion wipeout across the sector. “It’s not a product that’s trying to own every workflow,” said Scott White, Anthropic’s head of product for enterprise. (Reuters)
Still, Accenture’s shares are caught between two competing forces: the immediate drive to ramp up AI-related sales, and a broader worry that automation could shrink the pool of future work—and might squeeze margins. Should enterprise budgets tighten, or if clients drag their feet, that whole “AI rollout” story could unravel fast.
U.S. cash trading has wrapped, leaving the next session to reveal if fresh buyers defend the new low—or if analysts continue cutting price targets. Looking ahead, Accenture’s fiscal 2026 Q2 earnings call hits Thursday, March 19 at 8:00 a.m. EST. Investors will be watching for updates on bookings and any tweaks to the outlook tied to AI work. (investor.accenture.com)
