Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Has $59.50 Million Stock Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 26.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 300,080 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 63,130 shares during the period. Accenture comprises 2.1% of Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $59,503,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in Accenture during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Accenture during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. McMillan Office Inc. bought a new position in Accenture during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Accenture during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $138.50 on Tuesday. Accenture PLC has a 1-year low of $118.15 and a 1-year high of $291.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $202.54. The firm has a market cap of $92.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.13.

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

Accenture Announces Dividend

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

Accenture declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, June 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the information technology services provider to buy up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ACN shares. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Guggenheim dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $225.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Monday, June 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, June 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $201.00 price objective on Accenture in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $193.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Accenture 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

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.