Wishbone Management LP Takes Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Wishbone Management LP purchased a new stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 135,000 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $36,220,000. Accenture makes up about 15.5% of Wishbone Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 30.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 90,396 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $24,253,000 after purchasing an additional 20,846 shares in the last quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 16,999 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,561,000 after purchasing an additional 2,606 shares in the last quarter. Circle Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Accenture by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Circle Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $478,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Accenture by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 62,826 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $16,856,000 after acquiring an additional 5,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Accenture by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC now owns 29,122 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $7,813,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Price Performance

Accenture stock opened at $169.95 on Friday. Accenture PLC has a 12-month low of $155.82 and a 12-month high of $317.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $181.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $221.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.80 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.40%.

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ACN shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $199.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $248.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $247.00 to $201.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 8th. Seventeen equities research 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, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.89.

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.