Capital World Investors Acquires 69,897 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,159,022 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after buying an additional 69,897 shares during the quarter. Capital World Investors’ holdings in Accenture were worth $310,966,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Capital International Sarl increased its holdings in Accenture by 100.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Sarl now owns 38,425 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $10,309,000 after acquiring an additional 19,238 shares during the period. Capital International Ltd. CA increased its holdings in Accenture by 200.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Ltd. CA now owns 14,359 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $3,853,000 after acquiring an additional 9,581 shares during the period. Capital International Inc. CA increased its holdings in Accenture by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 194,467 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $52,175,000 after acquiring an additional 12,013 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Accenture by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,471,554 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,687,867,000 after acquiring an additional 343,420 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. increased its holdings in Accenture by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. now owns 36,799 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $9,873,000 after acquiring an additional 1,880 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ACN. Oppenheimer set a $201.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Monday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $248.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.81.

Accenture Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ACN opened at $174.42 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $183.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $223.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.09. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $155.82 and a one year high of $321.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.40%.

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

Insider Activity

In other 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. This represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

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.