Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Grows Stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 4.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,589 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,796 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,975,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.8% in the first quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 6,033 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $442,000 after buying an additional 276 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.7% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 658,693 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $48,276,000 after purchasing an additional 4,380 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.8% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 25,743 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,887,000 after purchasing an additional 2,074 shares during the last quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.5% during the first quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA now owns 12,917 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $947,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 124.6% during the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,246 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

CTSH stock traded down $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $67.81. The company had a trading volume of 364,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,085,480. The company has a market capitalization of $33.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $62.14 and a 12-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. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $67.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.18.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The information technology service provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.72 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.84% and a return on equity of 17.48%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 28.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CTSH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $74.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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.