Raymond James & Associates Sells 35,998 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Raymond James & Associates decreased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 423,413 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 35,998 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates owned about 0.09% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $32,679,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.2% in the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 4,720 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 691 shares during the period. DGS Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 13.6% in the first quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 7,672 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $562,000 after buying an additional 918 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 44,420 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,256,000 after buying an additional 1,650 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,697,000. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 21.9% in the first quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 4,937 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 46,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $76.07 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.46, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $62.14 and a twelve month high of $80.27. The company has a market cap of $37.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s fifty day moving average is $76.53 and its 200 day moving average is $71.77.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 11.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.10 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 28.85%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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.