Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Sold by Rodgers Brothers Inc.

Rodgers Brothers Inc. reduced its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,410 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 575 shares during the period. Rodgers Brothers Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $3,108,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $91,678,000 after purchasing an additional 40,226 shares in the last quarter. CGN Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $1,294,000. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 429,660 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $33,041,000 after buying an additional 144,535 shares during the last quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 436,509 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $33,568,000 after buying an additional 85,539 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% during the fourth quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 50,108 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,853,000 after acquiring an additional 17,134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 2.2 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $75.90 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.51. The company has a market capitalization of $37.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.83, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $90.82.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, March 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the information technology service provider to buy up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on CTSH. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on 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. StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $84.56.

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.