M&G PLC Increases Stake in Accenture PLC $ACN

M&G PLC grew its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 977,115 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,223 shares during the quarter. Accenture makes up about 1.3% of M&G PLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. M&G PLC owned 0.15% of Accenture worth $241,347,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investors Research Corp raised its stake in shares of Accenture by 73.8% during the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 106 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Accenture by 132.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 107 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Davis Capital Management acquired a new position in Accenture during the third quarter worth $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Accenture by 146.0% in the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 123 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $330.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $317.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Accenture from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $295.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $298.38.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other news, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total value of $1,101,650.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 27,221 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,523,339.98. This represents a 12.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Manish Sharma sold 2,731 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.13, for a total value of $786,883.03. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,033,333.41. The trade was a 27.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock valued at $5,970,434 over the last quarter. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Accenture Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $224.03 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $137.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.41. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $266.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $254.64. Accenture PLC has a 1 year low of $215.16 and a 1 year high of $392.02.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.21. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.65% and a net margin of 10.76%.The company had revenue of $18.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th were given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 13th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.88%.

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.