Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-one analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seventeen have assigned a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $77.44.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CTSH shares. StockNews.com lowered Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 21st. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $76.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $71.40. The company has a market capitalization of $37.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a twelve month low of $62.14 and a twelve month high of $80.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.85%.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 42.1% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 533 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Unison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.6% during the first quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 29,226 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $2,142,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. Choate Investment Advisors raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% in the first quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 48,552 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,558,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA now owns 12,917 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $947,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Personal Financial Services boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. First Personal Financial Services now owns 34,893 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $2,373,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

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.