Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Cuts Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado trimmed its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 3.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 68,880 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 2,317 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $4,684,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the second quarter valued at $40,000. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at $3,419,812.82. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on CTSH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $73.00 to $75.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $75.64 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 2.46. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $62.14 and a 1 year high of $80.27. The company has a market capitalization of $37.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $75.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.35.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.85%.

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.