Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Has $3.68 Million Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 148.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 47,811 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 28,573 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $3,677,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% in the 3rd 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 buying an additional 40,226 shares during the period. CGN Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,294,000. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 429,660 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $33,041,000 after purchasing an additional 144,535 shares in the last quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 24.4% during the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 436,509 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $33,568,000 after purchasing an additional 85,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% in 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 buying an additional 17,134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CTSH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird reduced 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 report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $68.06 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $78.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.80. The stock has a market cap of $33.66 billion, a PE ratio of 15.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $63.79 and a 12-month 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.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. As a group, 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 25th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information technology service provider to purchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are 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.

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