Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC Acquires New Stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 13,500 shares of the information technology service provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,038,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Addison Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 127.7% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 188.4% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 447 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the third quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on CTSH shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays boosted 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 report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.67.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH stock traded up $0.29 on Tuesday, hitting $84.84. 3,506,681 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,484,253. The firm's 50 day moving average is $81.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.73. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a one year low of $63.79 and a one year high of $90.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.96 billion, a PE ratio of 18.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. Sell-side analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.