Accenture resumed with a Hold at Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank resumed coverage of Accenture (ACN) with a Hold rating and $290 price target The firm resumed coverage on 25 stocks in the payments, processors, and IT services industry with nine Buys, 14 Holds, and two restricted ratings. Both industries have materially underperformed the S&P 500 Index year-to-date as investor expectations increased around the November election, leading to an end of year run-up “that has since proven overly-optimistic,” the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says that with trade uncertainty and consumer spending concerns, the outlook for the group “is as cloudy as it has been in the last five years.” In this uncertain environment, Deutsche favors “high-quality compounders” with consistent sales growth, margin expansion, and free cash flow generation.