Rhumbline Advisers Trims Stock Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Rhumbline Advisers trimmed its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,081,993 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 8,750 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.22% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $83,205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the third quarter worth $1,972,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% in the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $91,678,000 after purchasing an additional 40,226 shares during the period. CGN Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $1,294,000. Matthews International Capital Management LLC raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 50,108 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $3,853,000 after purchasing an additional 17,134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 worth $7,828,000 after buying an additional 11,349 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on CTSH shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

CTSH traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $88.43. 2,757,281 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,257,203. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $80.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.35. The company has a market capitalization of $43.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.61, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.07. 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 issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, equities analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.61%.

Insider Activity

In related 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% 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.