Park Avenue Securities LLC Acquires 3,471 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 17.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 23,259 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,471 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $6,240,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Running Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 7,190 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,658,000. Weitz Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Accenture by 28.8% during 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 buying an additional 35,900 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Accenture in the second quarter valued at about $2,216,850,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position 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 buying an additional 38,325 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Accenture News

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat and record bookings — Accenture reported EPS and revenue above expectations and said bookings remain strong, driven by AI and cloud demand; that underpins longer-term growth potential. BusinessWire: Q2 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnerships and product wins — New collaborations (notably with Microsoft on agentic security) and ongoing AI initiatives support deal pipeline and cross-sell opportunities. BusinessWire: Microsoft Collaboration
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns — Board announced a quarterly dividend (ex-dividend April 9) reinforcing cash return policy and yielding ~3.2%, which can support investor demand for the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Selective analyst upgrades — HSBC moved to “hold” with a $220 target and a few firms maintain outperform/buy ratings even as they trim targets; sentiment among sell‑side analysts is mixed. Finviz: HSBC Upgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple price-target cuts — Several brokers trimmed targets (BMO to $230, RBC to $253, Guggenheim to $250, Robert W. Baird to $265) after the quarter, increasing near‑term downside perception despite differing ratings. Benzinga: Analyst Moves TickerReport
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious revenue outlook — Management’s near-term revenue guidance came in below some Street expectations and the company warned of client caution on large IT transformation spending, which is the key driver of today’s weakness. Reuters: Revenue Forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downward revisions and stock reaction — Several analysts cut earnings/forecasts after the print and the stock is declining on higher-than-normal volume, reflecting profit‑taking and concern about near‑term execution and AI disruption risks. Benzinga: Forecast Cuts

Accenture Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of ACN opened at $200.41 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $123.38 billion, a PE ratio of 16.41, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.27. Accenture PLC has a 1 year low of $187.00 and a 1 year high of $325.71. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $234.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $246.68.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.The business had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. Accenture’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other news, COO Catherine Kiernan Hogan sold 660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.93, for a total transaction of $185,413.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 12,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,564,439.84. This trade represents a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total transaction of $1,101,650.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 27,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,523,339.98. This trade represents a 12.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock worth $5,970,434 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on Accenture in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial cut their target price on Accenture from $317.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.00.

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.