Accenture's forecast eases AI disruption fears, lifts battered IT services stocks

The logo of digital consultancy firm Accenture is displayed over a booth at the Web Summit digital trade show in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, May 12, 2026. REUTERS/Chris Helgren

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Oct 1 : Accenture shares surged 22 per cent, on track for their best day ever, after a stronger-than-anticipated annual revenue growth forecast underscored the resilience of the IT consulting business hammered by worries over AI-led disruption.

The outlook signaled how global consulting firms are tapping into robust demand from companies seeking external technology partners to automate complex tasks and to support AI adoption, sending the beaten-down shares of peers higher.

Cognizant rose about 8 per cent and IBM about 3 per cent. US-listed shares of Indian rivals Wipro and Infosys also rose between 6 per cent and 7 per cent.

"A lot of institutions feel they're underinvested in software. That was clearly the case with Accenture, and investors are quickly reevaluating their views on the company," said Steve Sosnick, chief market analyst at Interactive Brokers.

Software stocks have largely recovered from a selloff early this year that began when Anthropic released new tools, fueling fears that AI could replace the products and services those companies sell.

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