Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC Reduces Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 41.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,893 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 5,638 shares during the quarter. Accenture makes up 0.9% of Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $1,946,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ACN. Sanders Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,637,640,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Accenture in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,216,850,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Accenture by 2.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,129,782 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $19,466,641,000 after purchasing an additional 1,315,548 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Accenture by 12.8% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,147,796 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,502,446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,970 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Accenture in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $308,000. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on ACN. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $235.00 in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Berenberg Bank began coverage on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. Susquehanna upped their target price on Accenture from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $298.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In related news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 1,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.30, for a total transaction of $488,380.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 37,346 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,766,851.80. This represents a 4.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Manish Sharma sold 2,731 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider directly owned 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,033,333.41. The trade was a 27.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 16,031 shares of company stock worth $4,509,304. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Accenture Stock Up 1.2%

Accenture stock opened at $236.30 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $145.47 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.24. Accenture PLC has a fifty-two week low of $229.40 and a fifty-two week high of $392.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $270.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $257.04.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.21. Accenture had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 26.65%. The firm had revenue of $18.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. Research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 13th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.