Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 52.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,304,530 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 1,419,814 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $339,113,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ACN. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Accenture by 41.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,128,134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,223,839,000 after acquiring an additional 4,984,930 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Accenture during the third quarter valued at about $311,694,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Accenture by 12.8% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,147,796 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,502,446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,970 shares during the period. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Accenture in the third quarter worth about $268,578,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Accenture by 85.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,041,945 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $503,544,000 after purchasing an additional 943,371 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Accenture Stock Down 0.6%

ACN opened at $179.10 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $173.56 and a one year high of $325.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $195.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $235.35.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $18.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Accenture’s payout ratio is presently 53.40%.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.23, for a total value of $1,461,130.11. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,679,963.65. This represents a 28.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total transaction of $863,026.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 target price on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Accenture from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Accenture from $266.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.50.

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.