Accenture (NYSE:ACN) Price Target Lowered to $210.00 at HSBC

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) had its price target reduced by HSBC from $220.00 to $210.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,MarketScreener reports. They currently have a hold rating on the information technology services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on ACN. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Accenture in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on Accenture from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Accenture from $266.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Accenture from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Accenture from $295.00 to $253.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.50.

Accenture Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE ACN opened at $190.37 on Tuesday. Accenture has a one year low of $177.50 and a one year high of $325.71. The business’s fifty day moving average is $206.79 and its 200-day moving average is $240.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $126.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.33% and a net margin of 10.61%.The business had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.82 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Accenture will post 12.73 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.40%.

Insider Activity at Accenture

In other 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 transaction, the chief executive officer 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Catherine Kiernan Hogan sold 660 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.93, for a total value of $185,413.80. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,564,439.84. The trade was a 4.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 15,331 shares of company stock valued at $4,048,871 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Accenture

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Purpose Unlimited Inc. purchased a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter worth approximately $8,206,000. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,387,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter worth approximately $79,000. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in Accenture by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 30,677 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $8,231,000 after buying an additional 2,657 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $742,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.14% of the company’s stock.

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.