Brandes Investment Partners LP Boosts Stock Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 56.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,191,388 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 787,808 shares during the period. Cognizant Technology Solutions accounts for approximately 1.8% of Brandes Investment Partners LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Brandes Investment Partners LP owned approximately 0.44% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $148,975,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,860,483,000 after buying an additional 7,445,089 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 16,795 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,231,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 373.8% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 76,159 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $5,752,000 after buying an additional 60,086 shares during the period. Duality Advisers LP purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,687,000. Finally, Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 1st quarter valued at about $233,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total value of $495,584.48. Following 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CTSH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Robert W. Baird boosted 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 report on Thursday, August 1st. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $76.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $77.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $76.89 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $75.61 and a 200 day moving average of $71.32. The company has a market cap of $38.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $62.14 and a 12-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 issued 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. The company had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.62 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.