Citigroup Trims Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Target Price to $82.00

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) had its target price reduced by Citigroup from $90.00 to $82.00 in a research note published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the information technology service provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Susquehanna reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $80.00 price objective (down previously from $87.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Wedbush upped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 26th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an underperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Societe Generale reissued a sell rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Friday, January 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $76.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.4 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $67.52 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.55. The company has a quick ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 12 month low of $58.09 and a 12 month high of $80.09. The stock has a market cap of $33.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.06.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The information technology service provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.98% and a return on equity of 17.83%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $69,354.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,312 shares in the company, valued at $640,522.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,860,483,000 after acquiring an additional 7,445,089 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $406,360,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 32.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,663,814 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,196,547,000 after acquiring an additional 4,365,493 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1,861.7% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 1,686,597 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $127,389,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600,621 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2,083.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,422,912 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $107,473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,357,755 shares during 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.