MML Investors Services LLC Has $2.41 Million Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

MML Investors Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,180 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,869 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter worth approximately $1,972,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 101,420 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $7,828,000 after purchasing an additional 11,349 shares during the last quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC now owns 60,291 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $4,629,000 after purchasing an additional 7,547 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 119,570 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $9,228,000 after purchasing an additional 6,626 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 907,902 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $70,072,000 after purchasing an additional 124,740 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of CTSH opened at $80.06 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.71, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a one year low of $63.79 and a one year high of $82.41. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 11.60%. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 26.55%.

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.