Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the twenty-one brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seventeen have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $77.44.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Bank of America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $75.35 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.46, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 52 week low of $62.14 and a 52 week high of $80.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.46 billion, a PE ratio of 18.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $75.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.43.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 28.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total value of $495,584.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,860,483,000 after buying an additional 7,445,089 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $406,360,000. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 19,850.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,016,114 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $205,096,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000,996 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.7% during the second quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 18,609,898 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,265,473,000 after buying an additional 1,943,127 shares during the period. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1,861.7% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 1,686,597 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $127,389,000 after buying an additional 1,600,621 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation, a professional services company, provides consulting and technology, and outsourcing services in North America, Europe, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Financial Services, Health Sciences, Products and Resources, and Communications, Media and Technology.