28,959 Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Sold by Boston Trust Walden Corp

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden cut its Accenture stake by 7.5%, selling 28,959 shares in the third quarter and retaining 355,166 shares valued at about $65.1 million.
• Accenture beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $3.29 per share and $18.68 billion in revenue; revenue grew 6.2% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $1.63 to $1.71 per share.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: 10 analysts rate the stock a Buy and 17 a Hold, with an average price target of $221.07.

Boston Trust Walden Corp lowered its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 7.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 355,166 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after selling 28,959 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 0.06% of Accenture worth $65,127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. IMG Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Accenture by 134.8% in the 1st quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 155 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Accenture during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Signature Equity Partners LLC boosted its position in Accenture by 50.9% during the third quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 172 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in Accenture by 57.9% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 210 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Accenture by 147.1% in the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 215 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Accenture Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of NYSE:ACN opened at $264.37 on Thursday. The business's 50-day moving average is $207.19 and its 200 day moving average is $192.07. Accenture PLC has a 1 year low of $118.15 and a 1 year high of $291.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $156.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $18.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.03 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be paid a $1.71 dividend. This is a boost from Accenture's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.44%.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Ryoji Sekido sold 5,844 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.84, for a total transaction of $1,430,844.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,194 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $292,338.96. The trade was a 83.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Julie Sweet purchased 12,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 26th. The shares were bought at an average price of $245.99 per share, for a total transaction of $3,001,078.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 48,910 shares in the company, valued at $12,031,370.90. This represents a 33.23% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 8,675 shares of company stock worth $2,047,563 in the last 90 days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Accenture from $136.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. UBS Group set a $278.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Accenture from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Accenture from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $175.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $221.07.

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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