Rafferty Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 18.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 298,770 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 46,202 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.06% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $22,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 45.1% during the fourth quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 67,119 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $5,070,000 after purchasing an additional 20,874 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 36.0% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,227,411 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $83,145,000 after acquiring an additional 324,638 shares in the last quarter. PGGM Investments increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 53.8% during the third quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 74,411 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $5,041,000 after purchasing an additional 26,035 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 532,677 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $39,242,000 after purchasing an additional 38,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,523 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $75.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of CTSH traded down $0.37 during trading on Monday, reaching $65.78. 4,379,120 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,194,397. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.90. The stock has a market cap of $32.71 billion, a PE ratio of 15.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.04. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $61.12 and a twelve month high of $80.09. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The information technology service provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.84% and a return on equity of 17.48%. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 28.85%.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total transaction of $69,354.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,312 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $640,522.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.