Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Acquired by Everett Harris & Co. CA

Everett Harris & Co. CA increased its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 366,321 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,858 shares during the period. Accenture comprises 1.2% of Everett Harris & Co. CA’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Everett Harris & Co. CA owned approximately 0.06% of Accenture worth $98,284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ACN shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. HSBC decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $199.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $248.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $260.81.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a new AI Adoption Maturity Model with Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute, a move that could strengthen its positioning as a trusted enterprise AI consulting partner and support future services demand. Article: Accenture and the Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute Launch AI Adoption Maturity Model to Help Organizations Scale AI with Predictable Outcomes
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at JPMorgan and TD Cowen maintained bullish ratings on Accenture despite trimming price targets, signaling continued confidence in the company’s long-term fundamentals and upside from current levels. Article: JPMorgan adjusts price target on Accenture to 201 from 247 maintains overweight rating Article: TD Cowen adjusts price target on Accenture to 258 from 282 maintains buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture’s planned acquisition of Whalar, a leading creator and social agency, suggests it is expanding capabilities in digital marketing and creator-led services, which could broaden its growth opportunities. Article: Accenture to Acquire Leading Creator and Social Agency Whalar, from Whalar Group
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary pieces emphasized Accenture as a major player in enterprise AI and highlighted its debt-free balance sheet, but these were mostly strategic overviews rather than new financial catalysts. Article: Is Accenture (ACN) Turning AI Readiness Consulting Into a Defensible Edge in Enterprise Services? Article: Accenture Plc (ACN): A Debt-Free IT Stock Expanding AI Capabilities Despite Downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Accenture shares were pressured by a stock decline versus a broadly firmer market, indicating weak near-term investor sentiment around the name. Article: Accenture (ACN) Stock Falls Amid Market Uptick: What Investors Need to Know
• Negative Sentiment: A recent Truist downgrade noted concerns about constrained client budgets and competitive pressures, reinforcing worries that consulting demand may remain uneven in the near term. Article: Accenture Plc (ACN): A Debt-Free IT Stock Expanding AI Capabilities Despite Downgrade

Accenture Price Performance

Shares of ACN stock opened at $174.42 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $116.06 billion, a PE ratio of 14.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $183.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $223.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $155.82 and a twelve month high of $321.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $18.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were paid a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.40%.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. This represents a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.