Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Sold by Rathbones Group PLC

Rathbones Group PLC lessened its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 906,565 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 199,195 shares during the period. Accenture accounts for about 1.0% of Rathbones Group PLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $243,231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Running Oak Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC now owns 57,541 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $14,190,000 after purchasing an additional 7,190 shares during the period. Weitz Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Accenture by 28.8% in the 3rd quarter. Weitz Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,550 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $39,592,000 after buying an additional 35,900 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in shares of Accenture by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 282,340 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $75,752,000 after buying an additional 61,314 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Accenture by 180.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 404,680 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $99,794,000 after buying an additional 260,357 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Accenture by 197.2% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 141,484 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $37,960,000 after buying an additional 93,880 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE:ACN opened at $179.12 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $188.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.64. 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 12 month low of $155.82 and a 12 month high of $322.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.19 billion, a PE ratio of 14.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Accenture from $280.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Accenture from $330.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Berenberg Bank assumed coverage on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $313.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim cut their target price on Accenture from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Accenture from $243.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total transaction of $863,026.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Accenture Profile

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.