Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Sold by Novare Capital Management LLC

Novare Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 12.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,768 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 8,317 shares during the quarter. Accenture comprises approximately 1.1% of Novare Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Novare Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $15,231,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in Accenture in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Accenture in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted 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 worth $29,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. lifted its holdings in Accenture by 107.5% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 110 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Stock Performance

Shares of Accenture stock opened at $168.94 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $112.42 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $190.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $231.32. 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 1 year low of $155.82 and a 1 year high of $322.86.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, March 20th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.80 billion. Accenture had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 26.33%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.82 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 13.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is 53.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total transaction of $863,026.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,267,746.28. This represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ACN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. HSBC cut their price objective on shares of Accenture from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on shares of Accenture in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $313.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen cut their price objective 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $274.50.

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.