Intuit Expands IDEAS Program to Help Small Businesses

Intuit INTU has announced the expansion of its Invest, Develop, Empower, Accelerate and Scale (IDEAS) Program in partnership with the Los Angeles Urban League. Originally launched as a pilot in Los Angeles, the program will now support 100 small business owners. Applications for this program are now open in Atlanta, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
In its inaugural year, participants of the Intuit IDEAS Program experienced an average revenue growth of 23% and saved 16.5 hours per month due to efficiencies enabled by INTU's financial technology platform, which leverages data and AI as part of its core strategy. Additionally, participants benefited from guidance provided by Intuit's experts and business coaching from the Los Angeles Urban League.
Selected small business entrepreneurs participating in the program will receive extensive support, including email marketing, executive coaching, business consulting, business compliance, bookkeeping, tax preparation and more.
The program aims to enhance business operations, efficiency, profitability and capital readiness by providing access to Intuit's comprehensive suite of products and services, along with a $5,000 grant upon program completion to assist in scaling their businesses.

Intuit's Expanding Portfolio Offerings to Aid Top-Line Growth

The company is constantly helping small businesses with the IDEAS Program as well as expanding its portfolio to make it relevant to its customers. It recently released some notable upgrades. These updates are expected to aid the company's top-line growth in the coming quarters.
Intuit projects fiscal 2024 revenues in the band of $16.164-$16.2 billion, indicating 13% year-over-year growth. The company expects fiscal 2024 non-GAAP earnings per share between $16.79 and $16.84.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for INTU's 2024 revenues is pegged at $16.19 billion, indicating year-over-year growth of 12.65%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $16.83 per share, indicating year-over-year growth of 16.88%.
Intuit recently introduced its new revenue intelligence technology, featuring always-on predictive and generative artificial intelligence models designed to help marketers increase revenues. This system, built on last year's launch of Intuit Assist, leverages INTU's extensive data and advanced AI to benchmark customers' marketing efforts against billions of industry-specific financial inputs from QuickBooks and marketing performance metrics.
The company also announced that it has agreed to acquire technology from mobility risk intelligence provider Zendrive. Key Zendrive employees, including CEO Dennis Ellis and Co-founder and CTO Pankaj Risbood, will join Credit Karma to enhance its usage-based auto insurance product, Karma Drive. This product allows Credit Karma members to receive real-time driving feedback and view potential insurance discounts before purchasing a policy, promoting safer driving behaviors.
INTU has announced a multi-year Canadian partnership with the National Hockey League (NHL), designating Intuit QuickBooks as the Official Small Business Accounting Software of the NHL. This partnership grants Intuit QuickBooks exclusive marketing rights and designations to be used in national advertising, marketing and promotional campaigns, enabling the company to engage with the NHL and its fans effectively.
Intuit faces competition in the Small Business and Self-Employed sector from The Sage Group and payroll services from Automatic Data Processing ADP and Paychex PAYX. The company also faces challenges in merchant services from financial institutions like Wells Fargo WFC, JP Morgan Chase JPM and Bank of America BACRP, as well as Consumer Segment from tax preparation provider H&R Block HRB.
Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have lost 1.4% year to date against the Zacks Computer and Technology sector's growth of 25.7% due to tough competition from different sectors.
Given the intense competition in various sectors, it is crucial for Intuit to continuously innovate and stay relevant to its customers. By expanding its portfolio of offerings, INTU can better compete with its rivals and even surpass them, ensuring to meet the evolving needs of its diverse customer base.

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