Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Lowers Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lessened its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 105,427 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 2,473 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $8,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 188.4% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 447 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $76.42 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $63.79 and a 1 year high of $90.82. The company has a market cap of $37.80 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $82.66 and its 200 day moving average is $79.43.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 27.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CTSH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Mizuho upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.71.

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.