Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Price Target Raised to $93.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) had its price target boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $82.00 to $93.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the information technology service provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on CTSH. Barclays upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.22.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $87.09 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $87.61. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $77.45. The company has a market cap of $43.18 billion, a PE ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.07.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 17.08%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date is 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 (DPR) is presently 26.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% in the third 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 last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,280,223 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,022,728,000 after purchasing an additional 173,667 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,348,102 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $257,469,000 after purchasing an additional 103,371 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.9% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.0% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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.