GFG Capital LLC Sells 2,713 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

GFG Capital LLC decreased its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 28.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,797 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 2,713 shares during the period. GFG Capital LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $1,824,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in 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 valued at $4,223,839,000 after purchasing an additional 4,984,930 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Accenture in the third quarter worth $311,694,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $2,502,446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,970 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the third quarter valued at $268,578,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Accenture by 85.9% during 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 buying an additional 943,371 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Accenture Stock Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $198.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $244.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.84 billion, a PE ratio of 16.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.27. Accenture PLC has a 52-week low of $187.00 and a 52-week high of $325.71.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders 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 yield of 3.3%. Accenture’s payout ratio is currently 53.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,679,963.65. This represents a 28.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 1,332 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $366,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 28,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,756,925. The trade was a 4.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 22,088 shares of company stock valued at $5,970,434. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Accenture from $280.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $282.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.88.

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.