Lipe & Dalton Reduces Stock Holdings in Accenture PLC $ACN

Lipe & Dalton decreased its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 65.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,077 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 3,928 shares during the period. Lipe & Dalton’s holdings in Accenture were worth $412,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Accenture by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,070,930 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $17,726,831,000 after purchasing an additional 854,361 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Accenture by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,264,675 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $7,583,462,000 after purchasing an additional 129,610 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,471,554 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,687,867,000 after buying an additional 343,420 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Accenture by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,656,436 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $3,922,212,000 after buying an additional 218,719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Accenture by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,693,994 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $2,869,199,000 after acquiring an additional 546,198 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Accenture Trading Down 3.4%

NYSE:ACN opened at $137.29 on Thursday. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $118.15 and a one year high of $304.19. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $161.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $205.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The information technology services provider reported $3.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.78 billion. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.47% and a net margin of 10.66%.Accenture’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.49 earnings per share. Accenture has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.780-13.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Accenture PLC will post 13.85 EPS for the current year.

Accenture announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, June 23rd that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology services provider to repurchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Accenture’s payout ratio is 52.08%.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In other Accenture news, CEO Atsushi Egawa sold 4,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 12,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,267,746.28. This trade represents a 27.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

More Accenture News

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Accenture announced a multi-million euro contract with NATO to support its Protected Business Network program, adding a high-profile government win that could strengthen near-term revenue visibility. NATO Announces Major Contract with Accenture to Help Advance Towards a More Agile and Resilient Digital Infrastructure
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture expanded its AI partnership with Google Cloud, launching “Accenture Edge” to deliver scalable agentic AI solutions for mid-market companies, which could help support future consulting and cloud services growth. Accenture Edge and Google Cloud Bring Scalable Agentic AI Solutions to Mid-Market Companies
• Positive Sentiment: The company also deepened its AI and cybersecurity push with ServiceNow, positioning itself to capture more demand for agentic AI-driven risk management and security services. Is Accenture’s Agentic AI Push With ServiceNow a Game Changer?
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and commentary note that Accenture may be trading at a discount after a steep decline, which could attract value-focused investors if its AI initiatives translate into better bookings and growth. Accenture PLC (ACN) Shares Surge 3.8% — What GF Score of 77 Tells Investors
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the new contract and partnerships, recent coverage highlights weak share performance, soft bookings, and a pressured revenue outlook, suggesting investors remain cautious about the pace of Accenture’s recovery. Accenture Down 29.3% in 3 Months: How to Approach the Stock Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Some articles also warn that Accenture’s AI push faces a major test, implying the market is still uncertain whether these initiatives will offset disruption and revive growth. Accenture (NYSE:ACN) AI Push Faces A Big Test

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Berenberg Bank cut their target price on Accenture from $273.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Accenture from $210.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Accenture from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Accenture from $315.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $225.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Accenture presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $193.33.

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.