Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Bought by Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 117.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,446 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,935 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $5,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Accenture by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,531,231 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,295,078,000 after buying an additional 143,483 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its position in Accenture by 17.7% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 6,054,682 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,110,247,000 after buying an additional 912,506 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Accenture by 120.0% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,482,150 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $690,475,000 after buying an additional 1,899,305 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE purchased a new stake in Accenture in the second quarter valued at approximately $309,873,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Accenture by 24.3% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,384,954 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $472,913,000 after acquiring an additional 466,452 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets set a $235.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. UBS Group set a $278.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Accenture from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Accenture from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $245.00 to $252.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $221.07.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Julie Sweet acquired 12,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 26th. The stock was bought at an average price of $245.99 per share, for a total transaction of $3,001,078.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 48,910 shares in the company, valued at $12,031,370.90. This represents a 33.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.84, for a total transaction of $1,430,844.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,338.96. The trade was a 83.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 18,675 shares of company stock valued at $4,747,563. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Accenture News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture is working with Qantas to modernize its operations, providing evidence of continued demand for its transformation services. Qantas said the program will involve cutting 850 jobs over the coming years; the reductions are at Qantas, not Accenture. Reuters: Australia’s Qantas to axe 850 jobs in offshoring deal with Accenture
• Positive Sentiment: A WSIB digital modernization project involving Accenture reduced employer registration from eight to ten business days to under ten minutes. The result offers a concrete example of Accenture’s ability to deliver cloud-based transformation and could help support future client sales. Ontario WSIB project announcement
• Positive Sentiment: U.S. management and technical consulting employment rose by 17,300 in October, its biggest monthly increase since December 2024. The gain may indicate improving demand for consulting services, although it does not guarantee higher spending at Accenture. The Overlooked AI Trade Hiding in a Beaten-Down Corner of the Market
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent comparisons describe Accenture as a large, profitable company with strong cash generation, but note that its revenue has fluctuated while some software peers have shown steadier growth. These comparisons highlight competitive strengths and trade-offs rather than a new change in the company’s outlook. Accenture vs. Adobe comparison
• Neutral Sentiment: The Qantas job cuts may draw scrutiny because the modernization arrangement includes offshoring, though the reporting does not indicate a direct financial or operational cost to Accenture. Qantas to Cut 850 Jobs After Tech Deal With Accenture

Accenture Stock Up 1.8%

ACN opened at $258.82 on Wednesday. Accenture PLC has a 52 week low of $118.15 and a 52 week high of $291.09. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $213.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $191.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $152.97 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.01.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its 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 company 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 revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.03 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.71 per share. This is a boost from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 13th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 50.44%.

Accenture Profile

Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps businesses, governments and other organizations solve operational and technology challenges. Its work includes strategy and management consulting, digital transformation, systems integration and the design, implementation and management of technology solutions. The company serves clients across a broad range of industries and geographies. Its services span cloud computing, data and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, software and platforms, business process operations, and digital marketing and customer experience.