PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators purchased a new position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN – Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 75,329 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $20,211,000. Accenture makes up approximately 0.7% of PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators’ portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position.
Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Weitz Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 28.8% in the 3rd quarter. Weitz Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,550 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $39,592,000 after purchasing an additional 35,900 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 282,340 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $75,752,000 after purchasing an additional 61,314 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 180.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 404,680 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $99,794,000 after purchasing an additional 260,357 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 197.2% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 141,484 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $37,960,000 after purchasing an additional 93,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 557,516 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $149,582,000 after purchasing an additional 149,357 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ACN shares. HSBC lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $265.54.
Accenture Price Performance
NYSE:ACN opened at $178.45 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $118.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company’s 50-day moving average is $184.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.34. Accenture PLC has a 12-month low of $155.82 and a 12-month high of $321.77.
Accenture (NYSE:ACN – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. Research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 EPS for the current year.
Accenture Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.40%.
More Accenture News
Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Accenture’s strong earnings-surprise track record and said the company has the ingredients for another beat when it next reports results, which can lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Will Accenture (ACN) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
- Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus reiterated its Buy rating on Accenture, reinforcing the view that the stock remains attractive at current levels. Stifel Nicolaus Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Accenture (ACN)
- Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a strategic investment and partnership with AlphaSense to bring agentic AI workflows for market intelligence to enterprises, underscoring continued momentum in AI services and enterprise transformation. Accenture and AlphaSense Announce Strategic Investment and Partnership to Bring Agentic Workflows for Market Intelligence to Enterprises
- Positive Sentiment: TEPCO Solution Advance also said it is working with Accenture to reinvent operations with AI, adding another example of new client demand tied to Accenture’s AI consulting capabilities. TEPCO Solution Advance Teams with Accenture to Reinvent Operations with AI
- Neutral Sentiment: Several recent opinion pieces argued that Accenture looks undervalued on earnings and cash flow metrics, which may help investor confidence, but these were commentary rather than new fundamentals. Accenture: A 57% Drop Meets A 12.8 P/E – The Ultimate Margin Of Safety
- Neutral Sentiment: Other analysis said AI is accelerating demand rather than disrupting Accenture’s business model, supporting the long-term bull case but not changing near-term results on its own. Accenture: AI Is Accelerating Instead Of Disrupting The Consultancy
- Negative Sentiment: At least one recent valuation update trimmed Accenture’s fair value estimate and another note pointed to softer IT spending and AI competition, reflecting lingering caution around growth and margins. How The Investment Story For Accenture (ACN) Is Shifting With AI And Softer IT Spending
Insider Transactions at Accenture
In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. This represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction 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.
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.
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