Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Trims Stake in Accenture PLC $ACN

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 4.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 236,950 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 12,000 shares during the quarter. Accenture comprises 2.0% of Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $58,432,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Investors Research Corp increased its holdings in shares of Accenture by 73.8% in the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 106 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Accenture by 132.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 107 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Accenture by 146.0% in the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 123 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Accenture during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Accenture Trading Down 0.5%

ACN opened at $286.33 on Monday. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $229.40 and a one year high of $398.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.41. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $264.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $258.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $176.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.66, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.25.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $18.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.51 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.65% and a net margin of 10.76%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.59 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. Analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 13th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on ACN. Wolfe Research increased their target price on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Argus dropped their target price on Accenture from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Accenture has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $297.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mauro Macchi sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total transaction of $140,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 7,123 shares in the company, valued at $1,994,440. The trade was a 6.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Manish Sharma sold 2,731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.13, for a total transaction of $786,883.03. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,033,333.41. This trade represents a 27.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,076 shares of company stock worth $10,256,788. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.