NEOS Investment Management LLC Has $12.45 Million Stake in Accenture PLC $ACN

NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 11.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,045 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,671 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $12,450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Accenture in the 2nd quarter valued at about $13,968,000. AXQ Capital LP acquired a new position in Accenture during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,254,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC boosted its holdings in Accenture by 4.1% in the second quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 8,146 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,014,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its stake in Accenture by 97.0% in the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 2,017 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $251,000 after acquiring an additional 993 shares during the period. Finally, Hudson Portfolio Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 172.5% during the second quarter. Hudson Portfolio Management LLC now owns 3,191 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $397,000 after acquiring an additional 2,020 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Accenture Stock Down 3.4%

ACN opened at $186.53 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $161.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $176.85. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $118.15 and a twelve month high of $291.09. The stock has a market cap of $124.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.90, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 19th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.78 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 26.47%. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Accenture Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th were issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Accenture news, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 10,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.98, for a total transaction of $1,710,964.04. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 17,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,890,450.30. The trade was a 37.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ACN shares. Mizuho cut their target price on Accenture from $280.00 to $226.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Accenture from $186.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $177.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Accenture from $253.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $136.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $194.19.

About Accenture

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.