Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Has $94.92 Million Position in Accenture PLC $ACN

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 18.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 384,916 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after buying an additional 59,653 shares during the period. Accenture comprises about 1.6% of Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $94,920,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. grew its holdings in Accenture by 0.9% during the third quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. now owns 4,416 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Accenture by 1.2% in the second quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,751 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,108,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Councilmark Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Accenture by 0.5% in the second quarter. Councilmark Asset Management LLC now owns 9,344 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,793,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Investors Research Corp lifted its position in shares of Accenture by 73.8% in the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 106 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 1,476 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $364,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup dropped their price target on Accenture from $266.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $280.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Accenture currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $288.35.

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, CAO Melissa A. Burgum sold 3,588 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.01, for a total transaction of $1,008,263.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 8,179 shares in the company, valued at $2,298,380.79. This represents a 30.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 1,332 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $366,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 28,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,756,925. The trade was a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 22,088 shares of company stock worth $5,970,434. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $196.41 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $120.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $241.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $248.73. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $188.73 and a one year high of $326.73.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last posted its earnings results 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. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.65% and a net margin of 10.76%.The company had revenue of $18.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.59 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th were issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 13th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Accenture’s payout ratio is currently 53.88%.

Trending Headlines about Accenture

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Udacity (part of Accenture) launched an accredited MBA program aimed at training AI product leaders — a revenue/brand-positive move that strengthens Accenture’s talent pipeline and positioning in AI services. Udacity, Part of Accenture, Launches Accredited MBA to Train the Next Generation of AI Product Leaders
• Positive Sentiment: Investor research argues Accenture is well-placed to benefit from AI implementation contracts, highlighting upside from rising enterprise AI spend — a bullish narrative for medium-term revenue growth. Accenture (ACN) is Poised to Benefit from AI Implementation Contracts
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture expanded its Google Cloud partnership to help clients strengthen cloud security — a direct revenue-opportunity in managed security and cloud transformation services. Accenture Helps Organizations Strengthen Cloud Security with Google Cloud
• Positive Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha piece argues Accenture may be undervalued after prior overvaluation, presenting a valuation-based bullish case for long-term investors. Accenture: Undervalued After Years Of Overvaluation
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks previews Accenture’s upcoming earnings and suggests the company may not have the setup for an earnings beat, signaling investor caution into the report. Accenture (ACN) Earnings Expected to Grow: Should You Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reminder: Accenture is projected to post quarterly earnings this week, a scheduled catalyst that could swing the stock depending on guidance and margins. Accenture (ACN) Projected to Post Earnings on Thursday
• Negative Sentiment: Truist cut its price target on ACN to $260 (from $317) and warned of pressure on long-term estimates after its enterprise-AI checks — the downgrade dampens sentiment despite a maintained Buy rating. Truist Financial Cuts Accenture (NYSE:ACN) Price Target to $260.00 Truist Lowers Accenture (ACN) Target to $260, Warns of Pressure on Long-Term Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Guggenheim lowered its price target on Accenture to $275, adding to analyst-driven downward pressure on the stock in the run-up to earnings. Guggenheim Lowers Accenture (NYSE:ACN) Price Target to $275.00

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.