Accenture PLC $ACN Stock: Compass Capital Management Inc. Cuts Holdings

Compass Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 1.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 294,092 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 4,585 shares during the quarter. Accenture accounts for about 3.4% of Compass Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $53,928,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Accenture by 11.2% in the third quarter. Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC now owns 117,589 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $21,562,000 after acquiring an additional 11,873 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Accenture by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 74,187 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $9,232,000 after purchasing an additional 7,018 shares during the period. Carnegie Investment Counsel lifted its position in shares of Accenture by 63.5% in the 3rd quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 26,565 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,871,000 after purchasing an additional 10,322 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 72.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 19,455 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,421,000 after purchasing an additional 8,169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aprio Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 47.9% in the 3rd quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,216 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,140,000 after purchasing an additional 2,014 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In related news, Director Paula Price purchased 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $249.81 per share, with a total value of $199,848.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 9,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,338,471.41. This represents a 9.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.00, for a total value of $2,700,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 5,996 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,618,920. This trade represents a 62.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 18,675 shares of company stock valued at $4,747,563 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Up 0.3%

Accenture stock opened at $250.80 on Friday. Accenture PLC has a 1-year low of $118.15 and a 1-year high of $291.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $148.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $216.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $191.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Accenture had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 26.53%. The company had revenue of $18.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th were given a dividend of $1.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 13th. This is a positive change from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Accenture’s payout ratio is presently 50.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Accenture from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $245.00 to $252.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Accenture from $135.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $221.07.

About Accenture

Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps businesses, governments and other organizations solve operational and technology challenges. Its work includes strategy and management consulting, digital transformation, systems integration and the design, implementation and management of technology solutions. The company serves clients across a broad range of industries and geographies. Its services span cloud computing, data and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, software and platforms, business process operations, and digital marketing and customer experience.