State of Michigan Retirement System Buys 6,400 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Key Points

• State of Michigan Retirement System increased its Accenture stake by 3.5%, buying 6,400 shares to hold 187,338 shares valued at $50.263 million.
• Accenture beat quarterly estimates with EPS of $2.93 (vs. $2.84) and revenue of $18.04B (vs. $17.80B), and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.63 (annualized $6.52, yield 3.7%).
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" on ACN with an average target price of $274.50 (17 Buys, 10 Holds).

State of Michigan Retirement System grew its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN - Free Report) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 187,338 shares of the information technology services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 6,400 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System's holdings in Accenture were worth $50,263,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ACN. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position 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 during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Accenture during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in shares of Accenture in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Davis Capital Management bought a new position in Accenture in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Accenture by 96.4% in the 4th quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 108 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on ACN. TD Cowen reduced 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Accenture from $243.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Accenture from $280.00 to $230.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their target price on Accenture from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $274.50.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In related news, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total transaction of $1,101,650.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 27,221 shares in the company, valued at $7,523,339.98. This represents a 12.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.23, for a total value of $1,461,130.11. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 15,255 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,679,963.65. This represents a 28.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 10,057 shares of company stock worth $2,566,169 over the last three months. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Accenture Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $178.61 on Monday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $199.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.67. 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 PLC has a 52-week low of $173.84 and a 52-week high of $325.71. The company has a market capitalization of $118.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.24.

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

Accenture Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Accenture's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.40%.

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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