Vident Advisory LLC Purchases 50,635 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Vident Advisory LLC boosted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 450.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 61,864 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 50,635 shares during the quarter. Vident Advisory LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $4,758,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Unison Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 29,595 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 24,965 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,920,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 21.5% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 711 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,884 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 9,153 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $704,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.7%

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $80.99 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $90.82. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $75.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $78.94. The firm has a market cap of $39.92 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.93.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $5.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 26.11%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 25th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the information technology service provider to repurchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CTSH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $98.00 in a report on Monday. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $77.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities upped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.00.

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.