Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $76.44.

A number of brokerages recently commented on CTSH. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 26th. Societe Generale reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $70.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $69,354.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,312 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $640,522.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BSW Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.1% in the 1st quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 3,965 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 1,270 shares during the period. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 39.3% in the 1st quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 9,730 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $713,000 after purchasing an additional 2,744 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 40,040 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $2,935,000 after purchasing an additional 1,220 shares during the period. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.5% in the 1st quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 9,980 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,561 shares during the period. Finally, Hendershot Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Hendershot Investments Inc. now owns 219,582 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $16,093,000 after buying an additional 3,766 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $67.77 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $74.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.58. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 52 week low of $58.09 and a 52 week high of $80.09. The company has a market capitalization of $33.74 billion, a PE ratio of 16.14, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.25 and a current ratio of 2.25.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The information technology service provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.14. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.98% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

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.