Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA cut its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN – Free Report) by 16.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 54,892 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 10,940 shares during the period. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA’s holdings in Accenture were worth $10,066,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Slow Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Accenture in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,639,000. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Accenture in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $232,000. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC purchased a new position in shares of Accenture in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $224,000. Radnor Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Accenture by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 14,394 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,639,000 after purchasing an additional 1,280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brucke Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Accenture by 25.7% during the 3rd quarter. Brucke Financial Inc. now owns 3,330 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 680 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ACN. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $252.00 price target (up from $245.00) on shares of Accenture in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Accenture from $150.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Accenture from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $193.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a “reduce” rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $219.52.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on ACN
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Accenture news, CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.84, for a total value of $1,430,844.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at $292,338.96. This trade represents a 83.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Catherine Hogan sold 700 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.24, for a total value of $149,968.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 11,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,540,029.44. This trade represents a 5.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,173 shares of company stock worth $3,758,527. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Trending Headlines about Accenture
Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Accenture’s consensus price target reportedly increased 12.22% to $238.14, while a bullish analysis projects an additional 23% total return through December 2027. These updates suggest some analysts continue to see upside from the company’s AI and digital-transformation growth. Accenture consensus price target increased Accenture total return analysis
- Positive Sentiment: Accenture Federal Services is working with Google Public Sector on Gemini launchpads for U.S. federal agencies. The initiative could expand Accenture’s government AI pipeline and reinforce its position as a generative-AI implementation partner. Accenture federal AI push
- Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest quarterly results surpassed expectations, with earnings of $3.29 per share versus $3.18 expected and revenue of $18.68 billion versus $18.03 billion expected. Revenue grew 6.2% year over year, and Accenture also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.71 per share from $1.63.
- Neutral Sentiment: Accenture is reviewing options for its Greater China business, potentially including a divestiture. A sale could reduce geopolitical exposure and simplify operations, but the review introduces uncertainty about the region’s future contribution.
- Negative Sentiment: Robert W. Baird downgraded Accenture from Outperform to Neutral, citing the stock’s sharp rebound and concern that the valuation already reflects much of the expected growth. Baird maintained a $252 price target, offering limited upside relative to recent trading levels. Baird downgrade
- Negative Sentiment: CEO Ryoji Sekido sold approximately $1.43 million of stock, reducing his direct holdings by 83%, while Chief Accounting Officer Melissa Burgum sold $202,750 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Planned sales do not necessarily signal weaker fundamentals, but the transactions may weigh on sentiment.
Accenture Trading Up 0.0%
ACN opened at $249.42 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $147.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $196.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $175.99. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $118.15 and a one year high of $291.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.43.
Accenture (NYSE:ACN – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.53% and a net margin of 11.28%. The firm had revenue of $18.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 EPS for the current year.
Accenture Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be given a $1.71 dividend. This is a boost from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.44%.
Accenture Profile
Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps organizations transform their businesses through consulting, technology and managed services. Its work spans strategy and consulting, technology implementation, operations, and interactive customer experiences.
The company provides services in areas including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data and analytics, digital engineering, enterprise software, systems integration and business process outsourcing.
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