Benjamin Edwards Inc. Has $3.34 Million Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 13.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,461 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,998 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $3,342,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. AE Industrial Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $113,088,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 524,182 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $40,311,000 after purchasing an additional 35,129 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 1,113,396 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $85,620,000 after purchasing an additional 13,888 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 157,937 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $12,145,000 after purchasing an additional 6,277 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voleon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $853,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CTSH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $92.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. TD Securities lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.87.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ CTSH opened at $77.73 on Wednesday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $90.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. The stock has a market cap of $38.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $75.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.57.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $5.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.11%.

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

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.