Accenture (NYSE:ACN) Sets New 12-Month Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday after BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price target on the stock from $210.00 to $180.00. BNP Paribas Exane currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Accenture traded as low as $129.50 and last traded at $128.3780, with a volume of 1494648 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $156.01.

ACN has been the topic of a number of other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $177.00 price objective (down from $240.00) on shares of Accenture in a research report on Monday. HSBC reduced their target price on shares of Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Accenture from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Accenture currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total transaction of $863,026.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture reported fiscal Q3 EPS of $3.80, topping the $3.70 consensus and up from $3.49 a year ago, showing continued profit growth. Accenture (ACN) Tops Q3 Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: The company also announced strategic expansion in cybersecurity, including a majority stake in Dragos and acquisitions of runZero and NetRise, which could strengthen its AI-era security offerings. Accenture to Strengthen Critical Infrastructure Defense with End-to-End Cybersecurity Platform
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture also continued building its digital and healthcare footprint with deals for Unilever AI factory work, IndX, and Alfahealth, supporting longer-term growth opportunities. Accenture (ACN) Lands Unilever AI Factory Deal And Expands With Two Acquisitions

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Accenture

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ACN. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Accenture during the fourth quarter worth about $2,146,995,000. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Accenture by 41.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,128,134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,223,839,000 after purchasing an additional 4,984,930 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Accenture by 120.0% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,482,150 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $690,475,000 after buying an additional 1,899,305 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at $311,694,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Accenture by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,173,338 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,192,907,000 after acquiring an additional 1,122,855 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Accenture Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.76 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $179.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $219.86.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 13.83 EPS for the current year.

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.