Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) Forecasted to Earn Q4 2023 Earnings of $2.88 Per Share

Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN – Get Rating) – Analysts at Wedbush reduced their Q4 2023 EPS estimates for shares of Accenture in a research note issued to investors on Sunday, March 12th. Wedbush analyst M. Katri now expects that the information technology services provider will post earnings of $2.88 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.97. Wedbush has a “Outperform” rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for Accenture’s current full-year earnings is $11.45 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for Accenture’s Q1 2024 earnings at $2.98 EPS, Q3 2024 earnings at $3.17 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $2.90 EPS and FY2024 earnings at $12.13 EPS.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 16th. The information technology services provider reported $3.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.17. Accenture had a net margin of 11.31% and a return on equity of 31.49%. The company had revenue of $15.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Accenture from $310.00 to $290.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Accenture from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Accenture in a research report on Monday, January 30th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $289.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Accenture from $290.00 to $279.00 in a research report on Monday, December 19th. Finally, Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Accenture from $295.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Monday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.55.

Accenture Stock Performance

NYSE:ACN opened at $252.48 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $274.75 and its 200-day moving average is $275.84. Accenture has a 52-week low of $242.95 and a 52-week high of $345.30. The company has a market cap of $159.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.93, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Accenture in the fourth quarter valued at $1,850,765,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 101,214.0% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,040,402 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,078,141,000 after buying an additional 4,036,414 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 33.6% during the 2nd quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,858,899 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,459,673,000 after buying an additional 2,228,802 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,642,841 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $4,440,976,000 after buying an additional 2,163,582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Accenture by 502.3% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,191,413 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $563,851,000 after buying an additional 1,827,551 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Accenture

In other Accenture news, Director Paula A. Price sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.77, for a total value of $194,077.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,732,982.69. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider James O. Etheredge sold 1,790 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.75, for a total transaction of $464,952.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 17,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,448,738.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paula A. Price sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.77, for a total transaction of $194,077.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,732,982.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 39,015 shares of company stock valued at $10,884,179. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Accenture Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 10th were paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 11th. Accenture’s payout ratio is presently 40.69%.

Accenture Company Profile

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Accenture Plc engages in the provision of management consulting, technology, and outsourcing services. It operates through the following geographical segments: North America, Europe and Growth Markets. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.