Accenture PLC $ACN Stock: Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. Increases Stake

Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 7.2% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 31,480 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,119 shares during the quarter. Accenture makes up approximately 2.5% of Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $5,772,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Accenture by 2.2% in the 1st 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 increased its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 912,506 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Accenture by 120.0% during 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 buying an additional 1,899,305 shares during the period. Flossbach Von Storch SE bought a new position in Accenture in the second quarter worth about $309,873,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in 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 worth $472,913,000 after buying an additional 466,452 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Accenture Trading Up 3.9%

NYSE:ACN opened at $264.37 on Thursday. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $118.15 and a one year high of $291.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $207.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $192.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.50, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.01.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $18.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.03 earnings per share. The business’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. As a group, analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. This is an increase from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on ACN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Accenture from $136.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Accenture from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Accenture from $210.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. UBS Group set a $278.00 price target on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Accenture from $135.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $221.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Paula Price acquired 800 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 26th. The stock was bought at an average price of $249.81 per share, with a total value of $199,848.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,338,471.41. This represents a 9.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.84, for a total value of $1,430,844.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $292,338.96. The trade was a 83.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,675 shares of company stock worth $2,047,563 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Company Profile

Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps organizations transform their businesses through consulting, technology and managed services. Its work spans strategy and consulting, technology implementation, operations, and interactive customer experiences.

The company provides services in areas including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data and analytics, digital engineering, enterprise software, systems integration and business process outsourcing.