Benjamin Edwards Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in Accenture by 3.5%, purchasing 6,868 shares to hold 205,900 shares valued at about $55.26 million per its latest SEC filing.
• Analysts are mixed but the consensus rating is "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $274.50, while Accenture was trading near $179.96, well below its 52‑week high of $325.71.
• Accenture declared a quarterly dividend of $1.63 per share (annualized $6.52, ~3.6% yield), and insiders have sold roughly 10,943 shares over the past 90 days, including notable CEO sales.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 205,900 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,868 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Accenture were worth $55,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Accenture by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 878 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Accenture by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC now owns 329 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. grew its position in shares of Accenture by 0.9% in the third quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. now owns 4,416 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Accenture by 1.2% in the second quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,751 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $1,108,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, IVC Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Accenture by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 927 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 price objective on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, HSBC lowered their price objective on Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $274.50.

Accenture Trading Up 0.7%

ACN opened at $179.96 on Friday. Accenture PLC has a 52 week low of $173.65 and a 52 week high of $325.71. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $196.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $235.90. The firm has a market cap of $119.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.82 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 9th. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.23, for a total value of $1,461,130.11. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 15,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,679,963.65. The trade was a 28.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,943 shares of company stock valued at $2,327,545. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Accenture Company 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.

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