Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Holdings Lifted by Alaska Permanent Fund Corp

Alaska Permanent Fund Corp grew its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 71,000 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $5,363,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Arbor Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $728,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $313,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,909 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,051,000 after purchasing an additional 1,699 shares during the last quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 32.8% during the fourth quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 41,571 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,140,000 after purchasing an additional 10,278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN lifted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 12,123 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $916,000 after acquiring an additional 1,074 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

CTSH traded down $1.02 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $66.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 358,959 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,258,595. The stock has a market cap of $33.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $58.09 and a twelve month high of $80.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The information technology service provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.14. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.83% and a net margin of 10.98%. The company had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CTSH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Barclays increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Susquehanna reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down from $87.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.44.

Insider Transactions at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total transaction of $69,354.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,312 shares in the company, valued at approximately $640,522.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.