Accenture PLC $ACN Position Boosted by Confluence Investment Management LLC

Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 58.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 332,196 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 122,941 shares during the quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC owned 0.05% of Accenture worth $89,128,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Park National Corp OH lifted its position in Accenture by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 158,479 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $42,520,000 after buying an additional 11,336 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Accenture by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 23,259 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $6,240,000 after acquiring an additional 3,471 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Accenture by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 258 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Accenture by 34.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,860 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $3,182,000 after acquiring an additional 3,050 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Insight Wealth Strategies LLC boosted its position in Accenture by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 18,175 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,876,000 after purchasing an additional 3,649 shares during the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut their price target on Accenture from $266.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Accenture from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Accenture from $305.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.19.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other news, CAO Melissa A. Burgum sold 3,588 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.01, for a total transaction of $1,008,263.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 8,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,298,380.79. This represents a 30.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Manish Sharma sold 2,731 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.13, for a total transaction of $786,883.03. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,033,333.41. The trade was a 27.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 22,088 shares of company stock worth $5,970,434. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Accenture News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 beat on EPS and revenue; bookings strength — Accenture reported $2.93 EPS and $18.04B revenue, both above consensus, and cited record bookings and rising AI adoption that support near-term demand. BusinessWire: Q2 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic AI/cloud partnerships bolster positioning — Recent collaborations with Microsoft, Databricks and cloud partners deepen Accenture’s go-to-market for enterprise AI, supporting revenue mix and long-term growth opportunities. Seeking Alpha: Microsoft Partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Services resilience, cash returns and yield appeal — Commentary and analysis highlight resilient margins, strong managed-services performance, record bookings and ongoing capital returns (dividend/buybacks) that support shareholder value. Seeking Alpha: Strength Despite Sell-Off
• Neutral Sentiment: Management commentary on AI workforce impacts — CEO remarks suggesting entry-level roles may not be the most affected by AI add nuance to the narrative about disruption and rehiring/reshaping labor, but are not immediate revenue drivers. Investopedia: CEO Comments
• Neutral Sentiment: Smaller partnership news and institutional buying — Deals such as the RELEX/Lowe’s collaboration mention Accenture involvement and filings show some funds adding positions; helpful background but limited immediate impact. PR Newswire: RELEX/Lowe’s
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue/outlook disappointed some investors — Management forecasted upcoming quarterly revenue below Street estimates and gave a cautious tone on large IT transformation spend, which pressured sentiment after the beat. Reuters: Revenue Forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst cuts and macro concerns — Firms including TD Cowen and others trimmed price targets or lowered expectations; broader economic and AI-disruption worries have driven a deep YTD share decline that raises valuation concerns. MSN/TD Cowen: PT Cut
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment drag from wider sell-off and AI fear narrative — Coverage notes ACN has fallen sharply this year amid fears of AI disruption, which amplifies reactions to any cautious guidance. Barron’s: Context on Decline

Accenture Stock Up 4.1%

ACN opened at $203.16 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $235.99 and a 200-day moving average of $247.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.27. 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 PLC has a 1-year low of $187.00 and a 1-year high of $325.71.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The information technology services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 10.76% and a return on equity of 26.65%. Accenture’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.82 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current year.

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.