Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• Diamond Hill Capital Management cut its Accenture stake by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 94,156 shares and leaving it with 778,679 shares worth about $208.9 million.
• Accenture’s latest earnings beat expectations, with quarterly EPS of $2.93 versus $2.84 expected and revenue of $18.04 billion, up 7.8% year over year.
• Analysts remain mostly positive despite recent target cuts: the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $274.50, and the company also continues paying a quarterly dividend yielding about 3.7%.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 778,679 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after selling 94,156 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Accenture worth $208,920,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Accenture by 96.4% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Accenture by 107.5% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 110 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total value of $863,026.08. Following the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Accenture Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ACN opened at $177.94 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $187.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.13. Accenture PLC has a 52 week low of $155.82 and a 52 week high of $321.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.57, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The company had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.82 earnings per share. Accenture's revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were paid a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of Accenture from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $282.00 to $275.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $266.00 to $215.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Accenture from $309.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $274.50.

Key Headlines Impacting Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a strategic investment in XBOW, an agentic AI-powered autonomous cybersecurity testing platform, through Accenture Ventures. The move expands its AI and cybersecurity capabilities and could help it offer more advanced security services to clients. Accenture (ACN) Invests in AI-Driven Security Platform XBOW
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture also unveiled a collaboration with HUMAIN to accelerate AI adoption across Saudi Arabia’s public and private sectors, positioning the company as a strategic AI partner in a growing international market. HUMAIN and Accenture Accelerate AI Adoption at Scale Across Public and Private Sectors in Saudi Arabia
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent market commentary says Accenture has outperformed the broader market in the latest session, while also noting the stock remains well below its recent highs after a steep year-long decline. This reflects improving short-term momentum, but the bigger picture is still tied to whether AI-related wins can translate into stronger earnings growth. Accenture (ACN) Outpaces Stock Market Gains: What You Should Know

Accenture 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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