Empowered Funds LLC Has $5.92 Million Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 54.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,935 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 93,187 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $5,916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,972,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% during 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 stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,294,000. Matthews International Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% during the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 12.6% in the third 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 during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ CTSH traded up $1.12 on Friday, hitting $90.70. 4,369,973 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,990,005. The company's 50 day moving average price is $80.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.07. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $63.79 and a twelve month 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 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.99 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.61%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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.