Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-seven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $192.9630.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ACN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Accenture from $247.00 to $201.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 8th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on shares of Accenture from $180.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Dbs Bank downgraded shares of Accenture from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other news, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 10,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.98, for a total transaction of $1,710,964.04. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 17,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,890,450.30. The trade was a 37.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Accenture during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. McMillan Office Inc. purchased a new stake in Accenture in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in Accenture in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Accenture by 96.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 108 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $178.71 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $151.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $183.61. Accenture has a 52-week low of $118.15 and a 52-week high of $291.09. The company has a market cap of $119.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, June 19th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.47% and a net margin of 10.66%.The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Accenture will post 13.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 52.08%.

Accenture announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan 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 purchase up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.