Fiera Capital Corp Sells 7,509 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• Fiera Capital Corp cut its Accenture stake by 32.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 7,509 shares and leaving it with 15,469 shares valued at about $4.15 million.
• Accenture reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.93 beating estimates and revenue of $18.04 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 7.8% year over year.
• The company continues to return cash to shareholders, paying a quarterly dividend of $1.63 per share, or $6.52 annualized, for a yield of 3.8%.

Fiera Capital Corp reduced its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 32.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,469 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after selling 7,509 shares during the quarter. Fiera Capital Corp's holdings in Accenture were worth $4,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in Accenture by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 878 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Clayton Financial Group LLC raised its stake 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 worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. raised its stake 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 worth $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Accenture by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Peak Asset Management LLC now owns 5,447 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $1,461,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Accenture Price Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $173.44 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $115.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.08. Accenture PLC has a 52-week low of $155.82 and a 52-week high of $321.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $183.47 and a 200 day moving average of $223.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $18.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

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 dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Accenture's payout ratio is 53.40%.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary remain constructive on Accenture’s long-term outlook, citing strong demand for cloud, cybersecurity and AI services, along with support from acquisitions and expanding client engagements. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture’s launch of an AI Adoption Maturity Model with Carnegie Mellon’s SEI underscores its push to deepen enterprise AI consulting and strengthen its competitive position in AI readiness services. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several brokers maintained bullish ratings despite trimming price targets, including JPMorgan and TD Cowen, which still see meaningful upside from current levels. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Accenture announced the acquisition of creator marketing agency Whalar, a move that broadens its digital and marketing services footprint but also adds integration/execution risk. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: ACN shares have been falling recently even as the broader market rose, suggesting investors are cautious about near-term momentum and possibly digesting the impact of the Whalar deal and valuation concerns. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In other Accenture 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on ACN shares. Truist Financial downgraded Accenture from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $210.00 in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Accenture from $330.00 to $265.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Accenture from $309.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on Accenture from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Accenture currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $260.81.

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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