Shares of Accenture surged Thursday after the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter results beat estimates.

The consulting giant reported earnings per share of $3.29 on revenue of $18.68 billion. That exceeded LSEG consensus estimates of $3.18 earnings per share and revenue of $18.03 billion.

The stock surged more than 22% at one point, but ended the day up close to 16%.

In an exclusive interview on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street,” Accenture CEO Julie Sweet said AI has served as a key growth driver for the business as it accumulates partners in key AI sectors such as data centers and capital infrastructure.

“We’ve just finished the year with $85 billion of new business going into next year, and that is driven by our growth strategy to focus on big…