Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Friday morning.

CTSH has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a neutral rating and issued a $76.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Bank of America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and boosted their price target for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $77.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $77.87 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 1 year low of $62.14 and a 1 year high of $80.27. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $71.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The business had revenue of $4.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.62 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,860,483,000 after buying an additional 7,445,089 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $406,360,000. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 19,850.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,016,114 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $205,096,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000,996 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 18,609,898 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,265,473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1,861.7% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 1,686,597 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $127,389,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600,621 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

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.