Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC decreased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 23.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,443,970 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 432,804 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.29% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $111,043,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 20,606 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,585,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the period. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $313,000. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 22,840 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,756,000 after acquiring an additional 2,139 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 55.3% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 29,698 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $2,284,000 after purchasing an additional 10,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dymon Asia Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. lifted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 37.0% during the fourth quarter. Dymon Asia Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. now owns 12,600 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $969,000 after purchasing an additional 3,402 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CTSH shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays upped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho raised Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of CTSH traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.44. 3,091,360 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,605,795. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.83. The company has a market cap of $34.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $90.82.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 25th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology service provider to purchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

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.