Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Mizuho restated a neutral rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set a buy rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a neutral rating and set a $76.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, September 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $77.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $76.04 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $37.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 52-week low of $62.14 and a 52-week high of $80.27. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $75.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $71.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.46.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 11.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.62 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 58,045,823 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $4,254,178,000 after buying an additional 6,933,908 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 18,609,898 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,265,473,000 after buying an additional 1,943,127 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 7,781,273 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $569,175,000 after buying an additional 101,078 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,565,974 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $378,483,000 after purchasing an additional 94,209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,340,480 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $363,153,000 after purchasing an additional 142,225 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.