Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Lowers Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lowered its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 224,744 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 13,835 shares during the quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $17,283,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Unison Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 29,595 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 24,965 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $1,920,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,884 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,795 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $369,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 9,153 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $704,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a research note 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 on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $93.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price 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. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $84.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 0.0 %

NASDAQ:CTSH traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $70.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,056,958 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,597,608. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $79.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.93. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $90.82. The company has a market capitalization of $34.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is currently 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.