Accenture PLC $ACN Shares Sold by CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lessened its stake in Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) by 59.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 118,539 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock after selling 171,442 shares during the quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Accenture were worth $29,232,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Accenture during the 3rd quarter valued at about $21,801,000. Sycomore Asset Management acquired a new stake in Accenture during the third quarter worth about $14,116,000. Maple Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Accenture by 0.7% during the third quarter. Maple Capital Management Inc. now owns 114,229 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $28,169,000 after purchasing an additional 849 shares during the period. Achmea Investment Management B.V. boosted its holdings in Accenture by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 106,658 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $26,302,000 after purchasing an additional 2,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caerus Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $640,000. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 6,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.23, for a total value of $1,461,130.11. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 15,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,679,963.65. This trade represents a 28.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Melissa A. Burgum sold 3,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.01, for a total value of $1,008,263.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,298,380.79. The trade was a 30.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,088 shares of company stock valued at $5,970,434. Insiders own 0.02% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Accenture

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 Trading Up 4.1%

NYSE ACN opened at $203.16 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market cap of $125.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $235.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $247.16. Accenture PLC has a one year low of $187.00 and a one 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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.09. Accenture had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 26.65%. The firm had revenue of $18.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Accenture PLC will post 12.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on ACN. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Accenture from $320.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Accenture from $266.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on Accenture from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Argus cut their target price on Accenture from $370.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $286.19.

About Accenture

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.