Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.35.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.6 %

CTSH stock opened at $76.41 on Tuesday. 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 has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year high of $82.46. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.77. The company has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.90, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.55%.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were 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 $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter worth $122,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter valued at about $41,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 80.5% in the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,208 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $354,000 after buying an additional 2,323 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 45,474 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,092,000 after buying an additional 4,885 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,276 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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.