07:43 AM EDT, 09/18/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Media reports that Accenture plc ( ACN ) is planning to delay staff promotions by six months poses a threat to CGI Inc.'s (GIB-A.TO) share price, Desjardins said on Wednesday.

Analyst Jerome Dubreuil said this development from the Ireland-based professional services company "suggests further delays in the pace of recovery for IT services discretionary spending."

"This creates the risk of underperformance for CGI's stock in the coming weeks, especially with ACN reporting next Thursday (September 26)," Dubreuil said in a note to clients.

"We believe it is likely that ACN could formalize the expectation of delays in the pace of recovery at that time," the analyst said.

ACN declined approximately 5% on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday and CGI shares fell 1.1% on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Dubreuil maintained a Buy rating and $172 price target on CGI.

"Encouraging news from the Fed later this week could potentially support CGI's share price, but we believe upcoming news on CGI's fundamentals could skew to the negative side," the analyst said. "We therefore believe the stock could have a hard time breaking resistance around $157 in the coming weeks."

(MT Newswires covers equity, commodity and economic research from major banks and research firms in North America, Asia and Europe. Research providers may contact us here: https://www.mtnewswires.com/contact-us)

Price: 337.21, Change: +0.17, Percent Change: +0.05