Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 181,904 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Wellington Management Group LLP reduced its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,879,143 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 181,904 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 1.19% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $452,106,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CTSH. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $91,678,000 after purchasing an additional 40,226 shares in the last quarter. CGN Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter worth about $1,294,000. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 429,660 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $33,041,000 after purchasing an additional 144,535 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 period. 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 period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

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Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock traded down $3.46 on Thursday, reaching $73.27. 3,835,403 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,552,764. The stock has a market cap of $36.24 billion, a PE ratio of 16.25, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $82.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.49. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $63.79 and a twelve month high of $90.82. 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 quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. 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 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on CTSH. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Barclays boosted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho raised Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley lowered 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $84.56.

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.