Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the twenty brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fifteen have given a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $80.35.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased 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. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $76.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. Daiwa America upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $80.00 to $95.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 17th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 19,850.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,016,114 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $205,096,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000,996 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.7% in the second quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 18,609,898 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,265,473,000 after buying an additional 1,943,127 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 152.8% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,120,012 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $146,132,000 after buying an additional 1,281,236 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 276.9% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,588,528 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $122,603,000 after buying an additional 1,167,033 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $126,940,000 after acquiring an additional 978,579 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock traded down $0.23 during trading on Monday, hitting $79.00. The stock had a trading volume of 2,526,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,744,286. The business's 50-day moving average is $78.64 and its 200 day moving average is $75.13. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $82.46. The firm has a market cap of $39.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions 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 was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.