Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $83.67.

Several research firms have weighed in on CTSH. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Unison Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the 4th 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 during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 24,965 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,920,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,884 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,795 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 9,153 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $704,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $90.70 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.11. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $90.82. The firm has a market cap of $44.97 billion, a PE ratio of 20.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its 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%. On average, analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 26.61%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Company Profile

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.