Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and sixteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $291.6923.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ACN shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 price objective on Accenture in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial began coverage on Accenture in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. They set a “buy” rating and a $317.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $330.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In related news, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total value of $1,101,650.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 27,221 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,523,339.98. This represents a 12.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Catherine Kiernan Hogan sold 660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.93, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock worth $5,970,434 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Running Oak Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Accenture by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC now owns 57,541 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $14,190,000 after buying an additional 7,190 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Accenture during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,658,000. Weitz Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Accenture by 28.8% in the third quarter. Weitz Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,550 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $39,592,000 after acquiring an additional 35,900 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Accenture during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,216,850,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in Accenture by 17.4% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 258,599 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $63,771,000 after purchasing an additional 38,325 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Accenture Trading Down 2.7%

ACN opened at $209.18 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Accenture has a 12 month low of $188.73 and a 12 month high of $339.90. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $247.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $250.32.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $18.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.51 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.65% and a net margin of 10.76%.The company’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.59 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Accenture will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 13th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.88%.

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.