J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Boosts Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG boosted its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 8.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 224,517 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,841 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in Accenture were worth $44,519,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ACN. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Accenture by 4.5% during the first quarter. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Brindle & Bay Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Accenture by 45.4% in the first quarter. Brindle & Bay Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,168 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $827,000 after purchasing an additional 1,301 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 136.7% during the 1st quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 18,013 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $3,572,000 after buying an additional 10,402 shares in the last quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. boosted its holdings in Accenture by 813.3% in the 1st quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. now owns 42,962 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $8,519,000 after buying an additional 38,258 shares during the period. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Accenture in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ACN shares. Berenberg Bank dropped their target price on Accenture from $273.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research note on Friday, June 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Accenture from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Dbs Bank lowered Accenture from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $193.19.

Accenture Price Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $135.19 on Monday. Accenture PLC has a 52-week low of $118.15 and a 52-week high of $291.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $160.28 and a 200 day moving average of $203.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.13.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.47% and a net margin of 10.66%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.49 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, June 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the information technology services provider to purchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.08%.

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.