Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC Makes New $313,000 Investment in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,072 shares of the information technology service provider's stock, valued at approximately $313,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,028,485 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $4,539,290,000 after acquiring an additional 515,881 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,437,687 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,032,239,000 after purchasing an additional 157,464 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,147,006 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $857,205,000 after purchasing an additional 123,745 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,655,180 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $819,383,000 after purchasing an additional 287,973 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $527,719,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Mizuho raised Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, March 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on 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. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTSH opened at $70.01 on Thursday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $90.82. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market cap of $34.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $79.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.93.

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 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%. 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 25th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information technology service provider to buy up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CTSH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.