Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,862 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 9,513 shares during the quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $1,446,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Accenture by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 854 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Accenture by 0.8% during the second quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 4,902 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,465,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Piscataqua Savings Bank grew its stake in shares of Accenture by 5.3% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 796 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Accenture by 3.5% in the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 857 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Trading Up 4.3%

NYSE:ACN opened at $288.64 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $262.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $259.31. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $229.40 and a one year high of $398.35. The firm has a market cap of $177.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $18.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.51 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 26.65%. Accenture’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.59 earnings per share. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 13th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.88%.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Mauro Macchi sold 500 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $140,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 7,623 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,440. The trade was a 6.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 5,917 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.62, for a total transaction of $1,459,250.54. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 8,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,120,685.38. The trade was a 40.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 35,151 shares of company stock valued at $8,841,525 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Accenture from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 11th. Argus lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Friday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $296.80.

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.