Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Decreases Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE lowered its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 49.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,205 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 26,815 shares during the period. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Accenture were worth $5,394,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Accenture by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,070,930 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $17,726,831,000 after purchasing an additional 854,361 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Accenture by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,264,675 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $7,583,462,000 after buying an additional 129,610 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Accenture by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,471,554 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,687,867,000 after acquiring an additional 343,420 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Accenture by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,656,436 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $3,922,212,000 after acquiring an additional 218,719 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Accenture by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,693,994 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,869,199,000 after acquiring an additional 546,198 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Up 5.2%

ACN stock opened at $130.96 on Thursday. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $210.09. The company has a market capitalization of $87.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.46, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.14. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $118.15 and a twelve month high of $307.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.78 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 26.47%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.49 earnings per share. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information technology services provider to reacquire up to 2.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture was named an inaugural AI Specialization partner by NiCE, reinforcing its push to move from AI hype to real enterprise deployments and strengthening its positioning in AI services. Accenture (ACN) Lands NiCE AI Partner Recognition As Its Enterprise Push Expands
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles highlighted Accenture’s compressed valuation, strong cash generation, dividend profile, and buyback support, which may be encouraging investors looking for a cheaper entry point in a high-quality services name. Top 25 High-Growth Dividend Stocks For July 2026
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised its price target on Accenture to $151 from $150 while keeping a Hold rating, signaling slightly improved expectations tied to a higher share-repurchase outlook. Is Accenture (ACN) One of the Most Promising Future Stocks to Buy Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also focused on the Q3 2026 earnings call transcript, which could provide more color on demand trends, AI-related bookings, and management’s outlook. Accenture Q3 2026 Earnings Call: Complete Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the recent rebound in interest, some commentary still frames Accenture as a deep drawdown story facing AI-driven disruption concerns, which keeps sentiment cautious and may limit upside until growth reaccelerates. Accenture: One Of The Most Attractive Valuations I Have Ever Seen

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ACN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Berenberg Bank cut their price objective on shares of Accenture from $273.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, William Blair downgraded Accenture from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Accenture presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.00.

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.