Accenture

Accenture signed a record 141 deals worth 100 million dollars or more each this year. Total new contracts hit 84.5 billion dollars, more than the 74.2 billion it brought in, so more work is coming in the door than going out. Quarterly revenue of 18.7 billion dollars came in above the top of its own forecast, and tech and media clients grew fastest at 11 percent.

Accenture handed a record 11.5 billion dollars back to shareholders this year through dividends and buying back its own stock. That's up 38 percent. It also just raised its quarterly dividend 5 percent to 1.71 dollars a share, and with 11.6 billion dollars in cash left over after running the business, it can keep rewarding owners.

Accenture expects revenue to grow just 3 to 6 percent next year, down from the 7 percent pace it posted in the final quarter. Its consulting side, where companies pay for advice and shorter projects, grew 5 percent this year. Its long-term tech contracts grew 8 percent. Steady is nice, but this is not a fast grower.

Cash left over after running the business fell to about 2.9 billion dollars in the final quarter, down from 3.8 billion a year ago. Clients now take about 50 days to pay their bills, up from 47. Accenture also plans to return at least 9.5 billion dollars to shareholders next year, down from this year's record 11.5 billion. Not alarming, but worth watching.