Accenture PLC $ACN Position Raised by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,173,338 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,122,855 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 1.33% of Accenture worth $2,192,907,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its position in Accenture by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 117,056 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $31,406,000 after buying an additional 22,605 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its position in Accenture by 42.7% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 3,203 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $859,000 after buying an additional 959 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC grew its position in Accenture by 29.7% in the fourth quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 7,922 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,125,000 after buying an additional 1,816 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV grew its position in Accenture by 163.1% in the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 371,487 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $99,670,000 after buying an additional 230,291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its position in Accenture by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,159,022 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $310,966,000 after buying an additional 69,897 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

More Accenture News

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 Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE ACN opened at $178.45 on Monday. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $155.82 and a twelve month high of $321.77. 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 market cap of $118.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.62, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $184.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $224.23.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.82 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s payout ratio is currently 53.40%.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $199.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Accenture has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $265.54.

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.