Argent Advisors Inc. Buys 151 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Argent Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 12,607 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Argent Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $969,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $126,940,000 after purchasing an additional 978,579 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,985,816 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,928,405,000 after purchasing an additional 867,176 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,784,668 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $214,141,000 after purchasing an additional 705,946 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 29.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,748,982 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $211,369,000 after purchasing an additional 628,970 shares during the period. Finally, ING Groep NV grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,921,900 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $224,694,000 after purchasing an additional 443,536 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 1.1 %

CTSH opened at $80.02 on Tuesday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year high of $90.82. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $39.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. As a group, research analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 27.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CTSH. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.50.

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.