CI Investments Inc. Has $559,000 Stock Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• CI Investments Inc. slashed its Accenture stake by 98.4% in the first quarter, leaving it with 2,821 shares valued at about $559,000 after selling 169,584 shares.
• Accenture reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $3.80 per share, though revenue came in slightly below estimates at $18.72 billion. The company also raised attention with FY2026 EPS guidance of 13.780 to 13.900.
• The company approved a $2 billion share buyback and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.63 per share, equal to a 4.4% yield. Meanwhile, analysts are mixed, with the stock currently carrying an overall Hold rating and an average price target of $192.96.

CI Investments Inc. lowered its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 98.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,821 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after selling 169,584 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc.'s holdings in Accenture were worth $559,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Accenture in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Accenture during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. McMillan Office Inc. bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Accenture in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in Accenture by 96.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 108 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Accenture Price Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $147.04 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.13. Accenture PLC has a 1-year low of $118.15 and a 1-year high of $291.09. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $194.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. Accenture had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 26.47%. The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.49 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, June 23rd that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the information technology services provider to repurchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.08%.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on ACN shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Accenture from $177.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price objective on shares of Accenture from $180.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Argus lowered their target price on Accenture from $335.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $192.96.

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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