10,597 Shares in Accenture PLC $ACN Purchased by BG Investment Services LLC

Key Points

• BG Investment Services acquired 10,597 Accenture shares worth approximately $1.94 million in the third quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 75.14% of the company.
• Accenture exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.29 in EPS and $18.68 billion in revenue, with revenue up 6.2% year over year. The company also increased its quarterly dividend to $1.71 per share.
• Insiders sold $3.76 million of stock over the past three months, including CEO Ryoji Sekido’s sale that reduced his direct holdings by 83%. Analysts remain broadly neutral, with an average price target of $219.52.

BG Investment Services LLC acquired a new position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 10,597 shares of the information technology services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,943,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. grew its position in shares of Accenture by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 20,870 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $3,827,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in shares of Accenture by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 20,422 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $3,745,000 after purchasing an additional 806 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Accenture by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 7,886 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $1,446,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the period. NTV Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Accenture by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC now owns 7,985 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $1,464,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170 shares during the period. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in Accenture by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 7,416 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $1,360,000 after purchasing an additional 995 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other news, COO Catherine Hogan sold 1,320 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $264,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,556 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,511,200. This trade represents a 9.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.84, for a total transaction of $1,430,844.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,194 shares in the company, valued at $292,338.96. The trade was a 83.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 19,173 shares of company stock valued at $3,758,527. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Accenture Stock Down 3.6%

ACN opened at $249.42 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $147.42 billion, a PE ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.11. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $118.15 and a twelve month high of $291.09. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $196.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.53% and a net margin of 11.28%. The company had revenue of $18.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.03 EPS. Accenture's revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be given a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Accenture's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research increased their price target on Accenture from $165.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Argus upped their target price on Accenture from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $242.00 target price on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Accenture from $150.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $219.52.

Accenture News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture’s consensus price target reportedly increased 12.22% to $238.14, while a bullish analysis projects an additional 23% total return through December 2027. These updates suggest some analysts continue to see upside from the company’s AI and digital-transformation growth. Accenture consensus price target increased Accenture total return analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture Federal Services is working with Google Public Sector on Gemini launchpads for U.S. federal agencies. The initiative could expand Accenture’s government AI pipeline and reinforce its position as a generative-AI implementation partner. Accenture federal AI push
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest quarterly results surpassed expectations, with earnings of $3.29 per share versus $3.18 expected and revenue of $18.68 billion versus $18.03 billion expected. Revenue grew 6.2% year over year, and Accenture also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.71 per share from $1.63.
• Neutral Sentiment: Accenture is reviewing options for its Greater China business, potentially including a divestiture. A sale could reduce geopolitical exposure and simplify operations, but the review introduces uncertainty about the region’s future contribution.
• Negative Sentiment: Robert W. Baird downgraded Accenture from Outperform to Neutral, citing the stock’s sharp rebound and concern that the valuation already reflects much of the expected growth. Baird maintained a $252 price target, offering limited upside relative to recent trading levels. Baird downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ryoji Sekido sold approximately $1.43 million of stock, reducing his direct holdings by 83%, while Chief Accounting Officer Melissa Burgum sold $202,750 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Planned sales do not necessarily signal weaker fundamentals, but the transactions may weigh on sentiment.

Accenture Company Profile

Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps organizations transform their businesses through consulting, technology and managed services. Its work spans strategy and consulting, technology implementation, operations, and interactive customer experiences.

The company provides services in areas including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data and analytics, digital engineering, enterprise software, systems integration and business process outsourcing.

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