Sanctuary Advisors LLC Sells 31,793 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 33.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,193 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 31,793 shares during the quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $12,332,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in shares of Accenture in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Accenture during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. McMillan Office Inc. purchased a new position in Accenture in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Accenture in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

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

Accenture Stock Up 5.6%

Accenture stock opened at $144.68 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $96.62 billion, a PE ratio of 11.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $157.11 and a 200 day moving average of $199.76. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $118.15 and a one year high of $291.09.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 26.47%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 EPS for the current year.

Accenture announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, June 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information technology services provider to buy up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Argus decreased their price target on Accenture from $335.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Accenture from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. TD Cowen downgraded Accenture from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $258.00 to $150.00 in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Evercore set a $180.00 target price on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $193.19.

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.