PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators Takes Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators acquired a new stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 75,329 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $20,211,000. Accenture comprises about 0.7% of PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators’ holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ACN. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,146,995,000. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Accenture by 41.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,128,134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,223,839,000 after acquiring an additional 4,984,930 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at about $311,694,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at about $268,578,000. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Accenture by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,307,722 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $350,862,000 after purchasing an additional 969,792 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Accenture stock opened at $178.45 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $184.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.75 billion, a PE ratio of 14.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $155.82 and a one year high of $321.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.Accenture’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.82 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. This represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Accenture News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Accenture’s strong earnings-surprise track record and said the company has the ingredients for another beat when it next reports results, which can lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Will Accenture (ACN) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus reiterated its Buy rating on Accenture, reinforcing the view that the stock remains attractive at current levels. Stifel Nicolaus Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Accenture (ACN)
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a strategic investment and partnership with AlphaSense to bring agentic AI workflows for market intelligence to enterprises, underscoring continued momentum in AI services and enterprise transformation. Accenture and AlphaSense Announce Strategic Investment and Partnership to Bring Agentic Workflows for Market Intelligence to Enterprises
• Positive Sentiment: TEPCO Solution Advance also said it is working with Accenture to reinvent operations with AI, adding another example of new client demand tied to Accenture’s AI consulting capabilities. TEPCO Solution Advance Teams with Accenture to Reinvent Operations with AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent opinion pieces argued that Accenture looks undervalued on earnings and cash flow metrics, which may help investor confidence, but these were commentary rather than new fundamentals. Accenture: A 57% Drop Meets A 12.8 P/E – The Ultimate Margin Of Safety
• Neutral Sentiment: Other analysis said AI is accelerating demand rather than disrupting Accenture’s business model, supporting the long-term bull case but not changing near-term results on its own. Accenture: AI Is Accelerating Instead Of Disrupting The Consultancy
• Negative Sentiment: At least one recent valuation update trimmed Accenture’s fair value estimate and another note pointed to softer IT spending and AI competition, reflecting lingering caution around growth and margins. How The Investment Story For Accenture (ACN) Is Shifting With AI And Softer IT Spending

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ACN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Accenture from $275.00 to $248.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. HSBC decreased their target price on Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Accenture from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $265.54.

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.