Accenture (NYSE:ACN) Price Target Cut to $195.00 by Analysts at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup cut Accenture’s price target from $215 to $195 while keeping a neutral rating, implying only modest upside from the prior close.
• Other analysts have also lowered their targets recently, though the broader Street view remains Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $271.81.
• Accenture’s latest quarter beat expectations, with EPS of $2.93 and revenue of $18.04 billion, while the stock was trading around $189.95 and up 1.5% on the day.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by equities researchers at Citigroup from $215.00 to $195.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the information technology services provider's stock. Citigroup's price target would suggest a potential upside of 2.66% from the company's previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Mizuho cut their price objective on Accenture from $309.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. HSBC reduced their price objective on Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Accenture from $330.00 to $265.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Accenture has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $271.81.

Accenture Trading Up 1.5%

ACN opened at $189.95 on Monday. Accenture has a 12 month low of $155.82 and a 12 month high of $321.77. The firm has a market cap of $126.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $185.71 and a 200 day moving average of $226.37.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $18.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.82 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Accenture will post 13.87 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total transaction of $863,026.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through 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.

Institutional Trading of Accenture

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Running Oak Capital LLC raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 7,190 shares during the period. Weitz Investment Management Inc. increased 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 worth $39,592,000 after acquiring an additional 35,900 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Accenture by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 282,340 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $75,752,000 after purchasing an additional 61,314 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 180.4% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 404,680 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $99,794,000 after buying an additional 260,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Accenture by 197.2% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 141,484 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $37,960,000 after buying an additional 93,880 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company's stock.

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.

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