Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Sold by Eads & Heald Wealth Management

Eads & Heald Wealth Management decreased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,732 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 700 shares during the period. Eads & Heald Wealth Management’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $1,369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.4% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 454 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 42.1% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 533 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter worth about $37,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 0.0 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $74.61 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a one year low of $62.14 and a one year high of $80.27. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $76.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $71.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 2.46. The company has a market capitalization of $36.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.05.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.99 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.37% and a net margin of 11.60%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.16 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.55%.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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.