Strs Ohio Decreases Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Strs Ohio reduced its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 7.4% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 131,302 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 10,555 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Accenture were worth $26,036,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,146,995,000. Capital International Investors increased its position in shares of Accenture by 41.1% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,128,134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,223,839,000 after purchasing an additional 4,984,930 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the third quarter worth $311,694,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Accenture by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,173,338 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,192,907,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Accenture by 84.0% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,405,683 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $477,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097,961 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. This represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Shares of ACN opened at $137.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $164.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $208.64. The stock has a market cap of $91.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.13. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $118.15 and a one year high of $307.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.47% and a net margin of 10.66%.The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.78 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 EPS for the current year.

Accenture announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information technology services provider to repurchase up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Accenture from $210.00 to $185.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Accenture from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 1st. Dbs Bank lowered Accenture from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Accenture from $177.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $195.00.

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.