JB Capital LLC Purchases Shares of 11,077 Accenture PLC $ACN

JB Capital LLC purchased a new position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 11,077 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,972,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ACN. Investors Research Corp increased its holdings in Accenture by 73.8% in the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 106 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Accenture by 132.6% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 107 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Accenture in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Davis Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Accenture Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of ACN stock opened at $201.18 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $217.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $243.19. Accenture PLC has a 52 week low of $187.00 and a 52 week high of $325.71. The stock has a market cap of $133.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.48, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.The business’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.82 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.40%.

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total transaction of $1,101,650.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 27,221 shares in the company, valued at $7,523,339.98. This trade represents a 12.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 1,332 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $366,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 28,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,756,925. The trade was a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 22,088 shares of company stock worth $5,970,434. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Argus decreased their price target on Accenture from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 29th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Accenture from $330.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Accenture from $309.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.88.

Accenture Company Profile

Accenture is a global professional services company that provides a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. The firm works with organizations across industries to design and implement business transformation programs, deploy and manage enterprise technology, optimize operations, and develop customer and digital experiences. Its offerings encompass management and technology consulting, systems integration, application and infrastructure services, cloud migration and managed services, as well as security and analytics capabilities.

The company delivers industry- and function-specific solutions, combining consulting expertise with proprietary tools, platforms and partnerships with major technology vendors.