Accenture PLC $ACN Stock: Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Raises Stake

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 319.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,001,809 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 762,827 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $183,702,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Alpine Bank Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Accenture by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management now owns 323 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Accenture by 2.9% during the third quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,819 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 4.5% in 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. Kennebec Savings Bank increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 38.0% in the first quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 218 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GS Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Accenture by 0.5% in the first quarter. GS Investments Inc. now owns 12,415 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,462,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ACN has been the subject of a number of research reports. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Accenture in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Accenture from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “reduce” rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $252.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research report on Wednesday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $219.52.

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 10,498 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.98, for a total transaction of $1,710,964.04. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 17,735 shares in the company, valued at $2,890,450.30. This represents a 37.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Catherine Hogan sold 700 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.24, for a total transaction of $149,968.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 11,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,540,029.44. The trade was a 5.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 12,518 shares of company stock valued at $2,124,932 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Up 0.9%

ACN stock opened at $239.16 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.11. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $191.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $174.95. Accenture PLC has a fifty-two week low of $118.15 and a fifty-two week high of $291.09.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $18.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.03 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.53% and a net margin of 11.28%. The company’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.03 earnings per share. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be given a dividend of $1.71 per share. This is a positive change from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 13th. Accenture’s payout ratio is 50.44%.

Accenture announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, June 23rd that authorizes the company to buy back $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information technology services provider to purchase up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Accenture Company 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.