PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab Makes New Investment in Accenture PLC $ACN

PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 418,624 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $113,029,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Capital International Investors grew its position in 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 worth $4,223,839,000 after purchasing an additional 4,984,930 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter worth $311,694,000. 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 during the last quarter. Capital World Investors purchased a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter worth $268,578,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Accenture by 85.9% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,041,945 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $503,544,000 after acquiring an additional 943,371 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $330.00 to $265.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $317.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Piper Sandler set a $282.00 price target on shares of Accenture in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $282.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Accenture presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.14, for a total transaction of $863,026.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. The trade was a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,679,963.65. This trade represents a 28.42% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,943 shares of company stock worth $2,327,545. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Accenture Stock Up 0.7%

ACN opened at $179.96 on Friday. 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 fifty-two week low of $173.65 and a fifty-two week high of $325.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $196.46 and its 200 day moving average is $235.90. The stock has a market cap of $119.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Accenture Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Accenture’s payout ratio is 53.40%.

Accenture Company 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.