Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Acquired by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 261.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 126,100 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 91,186 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $23,123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Accenture by 2.2% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,531,231 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,295,078,000 after purchasing an additional 143,483 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Accenture by 17.7% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 6,054,682 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,110,247,000 after purchasing an additional 912,506 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Accenture by 120.0% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,482,150 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $690,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,899,305 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Accenture by 24.3% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,384,954 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $472,913,000 after purchasing an additional 466,452 shares during the period. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 67.6% in the third quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 2,196,789 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $402,825,000 after buying an additional 885,687 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Accenture Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of ACN opened at $253.46 on Thursday. Accenture PLC has a 12-month low of $118.15 and a 12-month high of $291.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $214.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $191.50.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.53% and a net margin of 11.28%. The company had revenue of $18.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.03 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be paid a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. This is a positive change from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.44%.

Key Stories Impacting Accenture

Investors following ACN have been watching these stories:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture is part of a multiyear Qantas agreement to modernize operations, demonstrating its ability to win large transformation projects. Qantas plans to cut 850 jobs over the coming years as it changes its operations; those are Qantas job cuts, not Accenture layoffs. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: An Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board digital overhaul led by Accenture reportedly reduced employer registration time from days to under ten minutes. This concrete client outcome may help support the case for demand for its services. Accenture WSIB win article
• Negative Sentiment: Accenture had rallied about 31.5% from October 6 through November 9, leaving room for profit-taking. Coverage also raises a relative-value question versus Cognizant, which could weigh on near-term investor enthusiasm after the run-up. Accenture and Cognizant comparison

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 10,000 shares of the business’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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 5,996 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,618,920. The trade was a 62.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.84, for a total transaction of $1,430,844.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at $292,338.96. This trade represents a 83.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 18,675 shares of company stock valued at $4,747,563 in the last ninety days. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on ACN. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. Deutsche Bank lifted their target price on shares of Accenture from $136.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $242.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Accenture from $193.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Accenture has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $221.07.

Accenture Company Profile

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.