Franklin Resources Inc. Has $2.19 Billion Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 15.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,173,338 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,122,855 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $2,192,907,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Weitz Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Accenture by 28.8% during the third quarter. Weitz Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,550 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $39,592,000 after buying an additional 35,900 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in Accenture by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 282,340 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $75,752,000 after acquiring an additional 61,314 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in Accenture by 180.4% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 404,680 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $99,794,000 after acquiring an additional 260,357 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Accenture by 197.2% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 141,484 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $37,960,000 after acquiring an additional 93,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in Accenture by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 557,516 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $149,582,000 after acquiring an additional 149,357 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $199.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $309.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $265.54.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Accenture’s strong earnings-surprise track record and said the company has the ingredients for another beat when it next reports results, which can lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Will Accenture (ACN) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus reiterated its Buy rating on Accenture, reinforcing the view that the stock remains attractive at current levels. Stifel Nicolaus Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Accenture (ACN)
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a strategic investment and partnership with AlphaSense to bring agentic AI workflows for market intelligence to enterprises, underscoring continued momentum in AI services and enterprise transformation. Accenture and AlphaSense Announce Strategic Investment and Partnership to Bring Agentic Workflows for Market Intelligence to Enterprises
• Positive Sentiment: TEPCO Solution Advance also said it is working with Accenture to reinvent operations with AI, adding another example of new client demand tied to Accenture’s AI consulting capabilities. TEPCO Solution Advance Teams with Accenture to Reinvent Operations with AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent opinion pieces argued that Accenture looks undervalued on earnings and cash flow metrics, which may help investor confidence, but these were commentary rather than new fundamentals. Accenture: A 57% Drop Meets A 12.8 P/E – The Ultimate Margin Of Safety
• Neutral Sentiment: Other analysis said AI is accelerating demand rather than disrupting Accenture’s business model, supporting the long-term bull case but not changing near-term results on its own. Accenture: AI Is Accelerating Instead Of Disrupting The Consultancy
• Negative Sentiment: At least one recent valuation update trimmed Accenture’s fair value estimate and another note pointed to softer IT spending and AI competition, reflecting lingering caution around growth and margins. How The Investment Story For Accenture (ACN) Is Shifting With AI And Softer IT Spending

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Accenture Stock Performance

ACN opened at $178.45 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $184.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $118.75 billion, a PE ratio of 14.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.09. Accenture PLC has a 1 year low of $155.82 and a 1 year high of $321.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.09. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Accenture’s payout ratio is currently 53.40%.

About Accenture

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.