Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Bought by Pinnacle Associates Ltd.

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 8.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,253 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,530 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $6,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ACN. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Accenture by 10.4% during the second quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 74,187 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $9,232,000 after purchasing an additional 7,018 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Accenture by 72.4% in the second quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 19,455 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,421,000 after purchasing an additional 8,169 shares in the last quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC bought a new position in Accenture in the second quarter worth about $25,108,000. Bright Rock Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the second quarter valued at about $7,466,000. Finally, Foster & Motley Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the second quarter valued at about $2,628,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ACN shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Accenture from $193.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on shares of Accenture from $180.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $220.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $150.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $252.00 price target (up from $245.00) on shares of Accenture in a report on Wednesday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $219.52.

Key Headlines Impacting Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture Federal Services is partnering with Google Public Sector to develop Gemini launchpads for U.S. federal agencies. The tools are intended to help government customers integrate generative AI into mission workflows and internal operations, potentially strengthening Accenture’s federal pipeline and AI credentials. What Is Accenture Signaling With Its Federal AI Push and China Review?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings of $3.29 per share versus a $3.18 consensus estimate and revenue of $18.68 billion versus $18.03 billion expected. Revenue rose 6.2% year over year, while strong bookings helped drive investor optimism. These 3 Stocks Surged Following Strong Quarterly Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Accenture is reviewing strategic options for its Greater China operations, including a possible divestiture. A sale could simplify the portfolio and reduce geopolitical exposure, but the review also highlights uncertainty around the region.
• Neutral Sentiment: Robert W. Baird reaffirmed its Neutral rating while raising its price target to $252 from $245. The higher target acknowledges recent momentum, but remains below the referenced trading level. Baird Downgrades Accenture to Neutral
• Negative Sentiment: Baird downgraded Accenture from Outperform to Neutral, arguing that shares had nearly doubled from their June low and that the valuation now reflects slower growth prospects. This may limit further upside unless growth accelerates. Accenture Stock Gets Downgraded as the Good News May Already Be Priced In
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares worth approximately $1.43 million, reducing his reported ownership by 83%. Insider sales are not necessarily a signal of deteriorating fundamentals, but the transaction can weigh modestly on sentiment.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In related news, COO Catherine Hogan sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.24, for a total value of $149,968.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 11,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,540,029.44. This represents a 5.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 10,498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.98, for a total transaction of $1,710,964.04. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 17,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,890,450.30. This represents a 37.18% 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 have sold 19,173 shares of company stock worth $3,758,527 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Shares of ACN stock opened at $259.11 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $194.57 and a 200 day moving average of $175.64. Accenture PLC has a 1 year low of $118.15 and a 1 year high of $291.09. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $173.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.11.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $18.68 billion for 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 quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.03 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be given a $1.71 dividend. This is an increase from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. Accenture’s 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.