DnB Asset Management AS Acquires 5,785 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

DnB Asset Management AS raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 94,863 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,785 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $7,295,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 188.4% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 447 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Spire Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTSH has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of 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. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their price objective 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 reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued 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 $84.56.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 2.2 %

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

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, topping 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 analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 25th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information technology service provider to buy up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.