Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Cuts Stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 37.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,190 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 6,018 shares during the period. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $786,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Addison Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 127.7% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 454 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays lifted their price target on 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. Bank of America raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com lowered Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $78.83.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 4.5 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $77.11 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $82.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.23 billion, a PE ratio of 17.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.75.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 17.08%. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.55%.

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.