Accenture PLC $ACN Stock: Alps Advisors Inc. Lowers Position

Key Points

• Alps Advisors cut its Accenture position by 19.2% in the third quarter, selling 52,715 shares and retaining 221,649 shares valued at about $40.6 million.
• Accenture reported quarterly revenue of $18.68 billion and EPS of $3.29, beating analyst estimates; revenue rose 6.2% year over year. It also raised its quarterly dividend from $1.63 to $1.71 per share.
• Accenture is working with Mondelēz International to apply agentic AI to global order-to-cash operations, highlighting demand for its AI services; the project’s contract value and expected revenue were not disclosed.

Alps Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 19.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 221,649 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after selling 52,715 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Accenture were worth $40,644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Accenture by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 23,142 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $4,244,000 after buying an additional 2,108 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP bought a new stake in shares of Accenture in the third quarter valued at approximately $200,000. Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Accenture by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 95,794 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $17,566,000 after acquiring an additional 1,933 shares in the last quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd raised its holdings in Accenture by 90.6% in the third quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 4,513 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $828,000 after purchasing an additional 2,145 shares during the period. Finally, ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC bought a new stake in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,117,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture and Mondelēz International are applying agentic AI to redesign Mondelēz’s global order-to-cash operations, including ordering, invoicing and collections. The project showcases demand for Accenture’s AI services, though no contract value or expected revenue was disclosed. Accenture expands AI work with a major consumer goods customer
• Positive Sentiment: A valuation analysis says ACN trades at about 18 times forward earnings, below its 10-year average of 24 times, even after a strong recent rally. That could appeal to investors who see room for the valuation to recover. Accenture’s valuation analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 10,000 shares for $2.7 million, reducing his direct holdings by about 62.5%. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, so it is not necessarily a signal about his outlook for the company. Accenture CEO share sale
• Negative Sentiment: Accenture fell even as the market rose, indicating relative weakness in the session. The report describes the decline but does not point to a specific company catalyst. Accenture stock underperforms as the market gains

Accenture Stock Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $260.36 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $210.35 and a 200 day moving average of $191.91. The company has a market capitalization of $153.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.69, a PEG ratio of 2.00 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 PLC has a 1-year low of $118.15 and a 1-year high of $291.09.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Accenture had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 26.53%. The business had revenue of $18.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.03 EPS. The business's 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, sell-side analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 14.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. This is a positive change from Accenture's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 is currently 50.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on ACN. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Accenture from $230.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Accenture from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Evercore set a $250.00 price objective on Accenture and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets set a $235.00 price objective on Accenture in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Accenture from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $221.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Julie Sweet acquired 12,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,031,370.90. This trade represents a 33.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paula A. Price bought 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $249.81 per share, with a total value of $199,848.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 9,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,338,471.41. The trade was a 9.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 18,675 shares of company stock valued at $4,747,563 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Accenture Company Profile

Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps businesses, governments and other organizations solve operational and technology challenges. Its work includes strategy and management consulting, digital transformation, systems integration and the design, implementation and management of technology solutions.

The company serves clients across a broad range of industries and geographies. Its services span cloud computing, data and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, software and platforms, business process operations, and digital marketing and customer experience.

Accenture traces its roots to the consulting business of accounting firm Arthur Andersen.

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