Vestcor Inc Has $4.94 Million Stock Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Vestcor Inc lowered its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 17.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,395 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 3,989 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Accenture were worth $4,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Accenture in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,146,995,000. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in Accenture by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,128,134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,223,839,000 after buying an additional 4,984,930 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Accenture in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $311,694,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Accenture in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $268,578,000. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Accenture by 287.0% in the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,307,722 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $350,862,000 after buying an additional 969,792 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Accenture’s strong earnings-surprise track record and said the company has the ingredients for another beat when it next reports results, which can lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Will Accenture (ACN) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus reiterated its Buy rating on Accenture, reinforcing the view that the stock remains attractive at current levels. Stifel Nicolaus Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Accenture (ACN)
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a strategic investment and partnership with AlphaSense to bring agentic AI workflows for market intelligence to enterprises, underscoring continued momentum in AI services and enterprise transformation. Accenture and AlphaSense Announce Strategic Investment and Partnership to Bring Agentic Workflows for Market Intelligence to Enterprises
• Positive Sentiment: TEPCO Solution Advance also said it is working with Accenture to reinvent operations with AI, adding another example of new client demand tied to Accenture’s AI consulting capabilities. TEPCO Solution Advance Teams with Accenture to Reinvent Operations with AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent opinion pieces argued that Accenture looks undervalued on earnings and cash flow metrics, which may help investor confidence, but these were commentary rather than new fundamentals. Accenture: A 57% Drop Meets A 12.8 P/E – The Ultimate Margin Of Safety
• Neutral Sentiment: Other analysis said AI is accelerating demand rather than disrupting Accenture’s business model, supporting the long-term bull case but not changing near-term results on its own. Accenture: AI Is Accelerating Instead Of Disrupting The Consultancy
• Negative Sentiment: At least one recent valuation update trimmed Accenture’s fair value estimate and another note pointed to softer IT spending and AI competition, reflecting lingering caution around growth and margins. How The Investment Story For Accenture (ACN) Is Shifting With AI And Softer IT Spending

Accenture Price Performance

Shares of ACN stock opened at $178.45 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $224.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market cap of $118.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.08. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $155.82 and a one year high of $321.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $18.04 billion for 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%.Accenture’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The firm 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 was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Accenture’s payout ratio is presently 53.40%.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ACN. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Accenture from $330.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. HSBC decreased their price objective on Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Accenture from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Accenture presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $265.54.

Accenture Company 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.