Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System cut its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 11.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,967,981 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 251,042 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Accenture were worth $485,304,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ACN. Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Accenture in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,637,640,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Accenture during the second quarter valued at $2,216,850,000. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Accenture by 41.1% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,128,134 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,223,839,000 after buying an additional 4,984,930 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Accenture by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,129,782 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $19,466,641,000 after acquiring an additional 1,315,548 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 12.8% during the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 1,148,970 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $196.41 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $241.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $248.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.27. Accenture PLC has a 52 week low of $188.73 and a 52 week high of $326.73.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.51 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 26.65%. Accenture’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.59 EPS. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.520-13.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business 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 was Tuesday, January 13th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ACN. Truist Financial cut their price target on Accenture from $317.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Accenture from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Accenture from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Argus dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $288.35.

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

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,679,963.65. The trade was a 28.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 1,332 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock valued at $5,970,434 in the last 90 days. 0.02% of the stock is owned by 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.