Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Has $44.84 Million Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 1,099.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 181,847 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 166,681 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Accenture were worth $44,843,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sanders Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Accenture in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,637,640,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Accenture during the second quarter valued at $2,216,850,000. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 41.1% in the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 4,984,930 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted 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 purchasing an additional 1,315,548 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Accenture by 12.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,148,970 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting 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 Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John F. Walsh sold 3,986 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.38, for a total transaction of $1,101,650.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 27,221 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,523,339.98. The trade was a 12.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 22,088 shares of company stock valued at $5,970,434 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on ACN. UBS Group lowered shares of Accenture from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. HSBC lifted their target price on shares of Accenture from $215.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on Accenture from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Berenberg Bank began coverage on Accenture in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $313.00 price target for the company. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Accenture from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $288.35.

Accenture Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE ACN opened at $196.41 on Monday. Accenture PLC has a 1-year low of $188.73 and a 1-year high of $326.73. The company has a 50-day moving average of $241.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $248.67. The company has a market cap of $120.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

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

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. 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 payout ratio is presently 53.88%.

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.