J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 50.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,260 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 7,318 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $1,790,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Investors Research Corp grew its holdings in shares of Accenture by 73.8% during the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 106 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Accenture by 132.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 107 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Davis Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Accenture in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Accenture by 146.0% during the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 123 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the third quarter valued at $32,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Accenture Price Performance

NYSE ACN opened at $240.95 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $270.21 and its 200 day moving average is $256.54. Accenture PLC has a fifty-two week low of $229.40 and a fifty-two week high of $392.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.41. The company has a market capitalization of $148.33 billion, a PE ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.24.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $18.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.51 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.65% and a net margin of 10.76%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.59 earnings per share. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 13th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. HSBC upped their target price on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Friday, December 19th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $300.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Berenberg Bank started coverage on Accenture in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $313.00 price target on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $330.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CAO Melissa A. Burgum sold 3,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.01, for a total transaction of $1,008,263.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,298,380.79. This trade represents a 30.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Catherine Kiernan Hogan sold 660 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.93, for a total value of $185,413.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 12,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,564,439.84. This represents a 4.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 16,031 shares of company stock valued at $4,509,304. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.