PFG Advisors Sells 14,860 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• PFG Advisors cut its Accenture stake by 52.7% in Q4, selling 14,860 shares and retaining 13,350 shares valued at about $3.58 million.
• Company insiders have been selling as well: CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares (~$1.46M) and insiders disposed of 15,331 shares (~$4.05M) in the past 90 days.
• Accenture recently beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.93 vs. $2.84; revenue $18.04B), declared a $1.63 quarterly dividend (3.4% yield), and holds a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $274.50 target.

PFG Advisors lessened its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 52.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,350 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after selling 14,860 shares during the quarter. PFG Advisors' holdings in Accenture were worth $3,582,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ACN. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Accenture by 132.6% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 107 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Accenture in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in Accenture in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Davis Capital Management acquired a new position in Accenture in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in Accenture by 96.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 108 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.23, for a total transaction of $1,461,130.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 15,255 shares in the company, valued at $3,679,963.65. This trade represents a 28.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Catherine Kiernan Hogan sold 660 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.93, for a total value of $185,413.80. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 12,688 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,564,439.84. This trade represents a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 15,331 shares of company stock valued at $4,048,871 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company's stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Accenture stock opened at $194.54 on Wednesday. Accenture PLC has a 12-month low of $177.50 and a 12-month high of $325.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business's 50-day moving average price is $202.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $239.12. The stock has a market cap of $129.46 billion, a PE ratio of 15.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.24.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.09. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on ACN. Berenberg Bank began coverage on Accenture in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Accenture from $300.00 to $230.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 target price on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their target price on Accenture from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $274.50.

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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