Davis R M Inc. Lowers Stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Davis R M Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 16.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,551 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 2,132 shares during the period. Davis R M Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $814,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 129.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,904,263 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $139,565,000 after buying an additional 1,073,666 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.7% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 64,111 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $4,694,000 after acquiring an additional 2,907 shares in the last quarter. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 1st quarter worth about $680,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 5,684 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 817,227 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $59,895,000 after purchasing an additional 4,165 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $80.63 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. The company has a market cap of $39.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.84, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $63.79 and a 1 year high of $82.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $77.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.41.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 26.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $79.47.

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.