South Dakota Investment Council continued to hold its stake in shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,900 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock at the end of the first quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Accenture PLC were worth $2,026,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture PLC during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,352,000. Beacon Financial Group purchased a new stake in shares of Accenture PLC during the first quarter valued at about $327,000. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings Inc. raised its position in Accenture PLC by 3.1% in the first quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 842,576 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $101,008,000 after buying an additional 25,216 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its position in Accenture PLC by 2.2% in the first quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 7,136 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $856,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Acropolis Investment Management LLC raised its position in Accenture PLC by 1.9% in the first quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 11,242 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,348,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.88% of the company’s stock.
Shares of Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) traded up 0.56% during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $130.11. 1,063,948 shares of the stock were exchanged. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $127.06 and its 200-day moving average is $122.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.04 and a beta of 1.11. Accenture PLC has a 1-year low of $108.83 and a 1-year high of $130.67.
Accenture PLC (NYSE:ACN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 22nd. The information technology services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.52. Accenture PLC had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 43.96%. The business had revenue of $8.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Accenture PLC will post $5.90 EPS for the current year.
Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ACN. BidaskClub downgraded Accenture PLC from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Cowen and Company reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Accenture PLC in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Berenberg Bank set a $140.00 price target on Accenture PLC and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “hold” rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Accenture PLC in a research report on Thursday, June 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $132.00 target price on Accenture PLC and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Accenture PLC has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $130.71.
In other Accenture PLC news, insider Richard Lumb sold 2,200 shares of Accenture PLC stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.26, for a total value of $284,372.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 119,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,383,620.38. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Pierre Nanterme sold 40,134 shares of Accenture PLC stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.02, for a total transaction of $4,937,284.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 222,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,354,973.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 79,817 shares of company stock worth $9,920,929. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
About Accenture PLC
Accenture plc is a professional services company serving clients in various industries and in geographic regions, including North America, Europe and Growth Markets. The Company provides management and technology consulting services. Its segments include Communications, Media and Technology; Financial Services; Health and Public Service; Products, and Resources.
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