Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Trims Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC cut its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 634,347 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 40,885 shares during the quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC owned about 0.13% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $48,781,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $527,719,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 54.6% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 5,633,987 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $433,254,000 after acquiring an additional 1,990,515 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,985,816 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $1,928,405,000 after acquiring an additional 867,176 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,784,668 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $214,141,000 after purchasing an additional 705,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,028,485 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $4,539,290,000 after purchasing an additional 515,881 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ:CTSH traded down $3.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $69.05. The stock had a trading volume of 1,626,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,583,815. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $80.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.16. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a one year low of $61.85 and a one year high of $90.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 25th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the information technology service provider to purchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is 27.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CTSH shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price 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. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.44.

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.