Principal Securities Inc. Has $345,000 Stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Principal Securities Inc. trimmed its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 61.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,492 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 7,077 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $345,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CTSH. Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 12,196 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $938,000 after acquiring an additional 1,027 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 111,044 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $8,539,000 after buying an additional 756 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 222,615 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $17,631,000 after purchasing an additional 6,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avestar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 7,245 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $557,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CTSH. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 3.1 %

CTSH opened at $84.82 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.81, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $81.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $90.82.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. As a group, research analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. The trade was a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.