Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• Hudson Edge Investment Partners increased its Accenture stake by 26% in the first quarter, adding 7,997 shares to bring its total to 38,787 shares worth about $7.69 million.
• Accenture reported quarterly earnings of $3.80 per share, topping estimates, while revenue came in slightly below expectations at $18.72 billion but still rose 5.6% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.63 and authorized a new $2 billion share repurchase program, even as analysts largely rate the stock a Hold with an average price target of $195.

Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. lifted its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 26.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,787 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,997 shares during the period. Accenture comprises about 1.1% of Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Accenture were worth $7,691,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. McMillan Office Inc. purchased a new position in Accenture in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on ACN. Oppenheimer set a $201.00 price objective on Accenture in a report on Monday, June 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Accenture from $253.00 to $175.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Accenture from $186.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $195.00.

Accenture Price Performance

ACN stock opened at $137.40 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.97, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.13. Accenture PLC has a twelve month low of $118.15 and a twelve month high of $307.77. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $164.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $208.64. 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 announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.10. Accenture had a net margin of 10.66% and a return on equity of 26.47%. The business had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.49 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. Accenture's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.08%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 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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