Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Grows Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,758 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,500 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $7,961,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 188.4% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 447 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Spire Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CTSH shares. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.39.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $79.12 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $82.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.41. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $63.79 and a 12-month high of $90.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.13 billion, a PE ratio of 17.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. 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 1.57%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.49%.

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.