Accenture (NYSE:ACN) Price Target Raised to $201.00

by · The Markets Daily

Accenture (NYSE:ACN – Free Report) had its price target raised by TD Cowen from $193.00 to $201.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. TD Cowen currently has a hold rating on the information technology services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on ACN. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Accenture from $135.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Accenture in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. William Blair lowered shares of Accenture from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Accenture from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Accenture from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $219.26.

View Our Latest Report on ACN

Accenture Stock Performance

ACN opened at $229.63 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $189.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $153.35 billion, a PE ratio of 16.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.11. Accenture has a 1 year low of $118.15 and a 1 year high of $291.09.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 1st. The information technology services provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. Accenture had a return on equity of 26.53% and a net margin of 11.28%. The firm had revenue of $18.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.03 earnings per share. Accenture’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Accenture has set its FY 2027 guidance at 14.390-14.810 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Accenture will post 14.68 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 13th. This is a positive change from Accenture’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Accenture’s payout ratio is currently 50.44%.

Accenture announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology services provider to purchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Accenture

In other Accenture news, COO Catherine Hogan sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.24, for a total value of $149,968.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 11,856 shares in the company, valued at $2,540,029.44. The trade was a 5.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 10,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.98, for a total transaction of $1,710,964.04. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 17,735 shares in the company, valued at $2,890,450.30. This represents a 37.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 12,518 shares of company stock valued at $2,124,932 in the last quarter. 0.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Accenture by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,531,231 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $1,295,078,000 after purchasing an additional 143,483 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Accenture by 120.0% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,482,150 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $690,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,899,305 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE bought a new position in Accenture in the 2nd quarter valued at $309,873,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Accenture by 84.0% in the first quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,405,683 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $477,023,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097,961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Accenture by 24.3% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,384,954 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $472,913,000 after purchasing an additional 466,452 shares in the last quarter. 75.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Accenture News

Here are the key news stories impacting Accenture this week:

  • Positive Sentiment: Accenture outlined a three-year plan targeting at least mid-single-digit revenue growth, with AI expected to become a net demand driver as clients move from pilot projects to broader implementation. The company highlighted AI-related work with UMass Memorial Health and expanded partnerships with Dell, Microsoft and Workday. Accenture Sees AI as Net Demand Driver
  • Positive Sentiment: Accenture plans approximately $8 billion in fiscal 2027 acquisitions to expand cybersecurity capabilities, industry expertise and other growth areas. Investors may view the spending as a catalyst for revenue growth and deeper AI offerings, although successful integration will be important. Accenture’s $8B Acquisition Push
  • Positive Sentiment: Several analysts raised their price targets after the investor day, citing Accenture’s AI opportunity and multi-year growth framework. Susquehanna increased its target to $230, while TD Cowen raised its target to $201, though both maintained non-bullish ratings. Analysts Raise Price Targets
  • Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo maintained a Hold rating, reflecting investor debate over whether AI-driven growth can offset slower consulting demand and execution risks. BNP Paribas similarly said Accenture’s positive tailwinds have not yet fully overcome existing headwinds. Accenture Tailwinds and Headwinds
  • Negative Sentiment: Accenture reportedly capped employees’ monthly Claude spending at $29 after some users spent as much as $1,000. The move may signal tighter control of internal AI costs and raises questions about how aggressively the company is using AI internally, despite marketing AI transformation to clients. Accenture Caps Claude Spending

Accenture Company Profile

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Accenture plc is a global professional services company that helps organizations transform their businesses through consulting, technology and managed services. Its work spans strategy and consulting, technology implementation, operations, and interactive customer experiences.

The company provides services in areas including cloud computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, data and analytics, digital engineering, enterprise software, systems integration and business process outsourcing.

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