Tredje AP fonden Sells 72,067 Shares of Accenture PLC $ACN

Tredje AP fonden trimmed its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 32.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 146,700 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 72,067 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in Accenture were worth $36,176,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,129,782 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $19,466,641,000 after acquiring an additional 1,315,548 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Accenture by 1.2% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,016,605 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $8,373,925,000 after purchasing an additional 326,979 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 1.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,042,843 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,182,331,000 after purchasing an additional 147,931 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Accenture by 12.8% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,147,796 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,502,446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,970 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Accenture in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,637,640,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Price Performance

ACN stock opened at $215.45 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $132.63 billion, a PE ratio of 17.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s 50-day moving average is $261.67 and its 200-day moving average is $253.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.41. Accenture PLC has a 1 year low of $211.06 and a 1 year high of $382.77.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $18.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.51 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.65% and a net margin of 10.76%.Accenture’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.59 earnings per share. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th were given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 13th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Accenture’s payout ratio is 53.88%.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other Accenture news, COO Catherine Kiernan Hogan sold 660 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.93, for a total transaction of $185,413.80. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 12,688 shares in the company, valued at $3,564,439.84. This represents a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total value of $1,101,650.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 27,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,523,339.98. This trade represents a 12.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock worth $5,970,434 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $313.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Accenture from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, UBS Group cut Accenture from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $298.38.

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.