Kentucky Retirement Systems Grows Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Kentucky Retirement Systems raised its position in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 33.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,487 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,184 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems' holdings in Accenture were worth $10,408,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Centaurus Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Accenture by 2.8% during the first quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 6,752 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $1,339,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Cim LLC boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 2.4% in the first quarter. Cim LLC now owns 6,994 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $1,387,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Bull Harbor Capital LLC bought a new stake in Accenture during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $227,000. Strategic Investment Advisors MI lifted its holdings in Accenture by 166.3% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 4,274 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $849,000 after purchasing an additional 2,669 shares in the last quarter. Finally, South Dakota Investment Council boosted its stake in Accenture by 19.2% in the 1st quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 70,450 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $13,970,000 after purchasing an additional 11,349 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ACN shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Accenture from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. William Blair downgraded shares of Accenture from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Argus decreased their price target on shares of Accenture from $335.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Accenture from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Twelve research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, Accenture has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $192.96.

Accenture Trading Up 5.2%

ACN stock opened at $173.23 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $153.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.11. Accenture PLC has a fifty-two week low of $118.15 and a fifty-two week high of $291.09. The firm has a market cap of $115.68 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 earnings per share. Accenture's revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. Accenture's payout ratio is presently 52.08%.

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

Key Headlines Impacting Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a $2 billion share-repurchase program and a new quarterly dividend, providing a direct boost to shareholder returns. The move followed fiscal third-quarter results that included adjusted earnings of $3.80 per share, above the $3.70 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 5.6% year over year to $18.72 billion. Why Are Accenture Shares Soaring Today
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture and Radisson Hotel Group launched an AI-powered hotel-discovery application within ChatGPT. The tool allows travelers to search more than 1,000 properties in over 100 countries using natural language and then complete bookings through Radisson’s website. The project strengthens Accenture’s position in “agentic commerce” and could lead to further travel-industry transformation work. Radisson Hotel Group and Accenture Redefine Travel Discovery on ChatGPT
• Neutral Sentiment: Accenture’s earnings preview and recent investor commentary highlight a mixed backdrop: the company benefits from strong demand for AI-related services, but growth has lagged some higher-momentum AI companies. Management’s fiscal 2026 earnings guidance of approximately $13.78–$13.90 per share remains an important measure for investors. Accenture Earnings Preview
• Negative Sentiment: A comparison with Palantir argues that Palantir currently has stronger U.S. commercial growth, larger AI contracts, and better estimates. The comparison reinforces concerns that Accenture could face slower growth or disruption as clients adopt AI tools and as competition intensifies. PLTR vs. ACN

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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