NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Trims Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC reduced its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 78,770 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 5,283 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $20,794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ACN. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Accenture by 0.9% in the third quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. now owns 4,416 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Accenture by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,751 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,108,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Councilmark Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Accenture by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Councilmark Asset Management LLC now owns 9,344 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,793,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Investors Research Corp boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 73.8% in the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 106 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Precedent Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Accenture by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,771 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,817,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $200.41 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $123.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.27. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $187.00 and a twelve month high of $325.71. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $234.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $246.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $18.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. Accenture’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ACN. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Argus dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Accenture from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $220.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.00.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat and record bookings — Accenture reported EPS and revenue above expectations and said bookings remain strong, driven by AI and cloud demand; that underpins longer-term growth potential. BusinessWire: Q2 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnerships and product wins — New collaborations (notably with Microsoft on agentic security) and ongoing AI initiatives support deal pipeline and cross-sell opportunities. BusinessWire: Microsoft Collaboration
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns — Board announced a quarterly dividend (ex-dividend April 9) reinforcing cash return policy and yielding ~3.2%, which can support investor demand for the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Selective analyst upgrades — HSBC moved to “hold” with a $220 target and a few firms maintain outperform/buy ratings even as they trim targets; sentiment among sell?side analysts is mixed. Finviz: HSBC Upgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple price-target cuts — Several brokers trimmed targets (BMO to $230, RBC to $253, Guggenheim to $250, Robert W. Baird to $265) after the quarter, increasing near?term downside perception despite differing ratings. Benzinga: Analyst Moves TickerReport
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious revenue outlook — Management’s near-term revenue guidance came in below some Street expectations and the company warned of client caution on large IT transformation spending, which is the key driver of today’s weakness. Reuters: Revenue Forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downward revisions and stock reaction — Several analysts cut earnings/forecasts after the print and the stock is declining on higher-than-normal volume, reflecting profit?taking and concern about near?term execution and AI disruption risks. Benzinga: Forecast Cuts

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.23, for a total transaction of $1,461,130.11. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,679,963.65. The trade was a 28.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 1,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $366,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 28,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,756,925. This trade represents a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock valued at $5,970,434 in the last 90 days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by 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.