Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Purchased by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 330,989 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,018 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $25,453,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CGN Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,294,000. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 429,660 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $33,041,000 after purchasing an additional 144,535 shares in the last quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 436,509 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $33,568,000 after purchasing an additional 85,539 shares in the last quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% in the 4th quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 50,108 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,853,000 after purchasing an additional 17,134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,219,380 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $93,770,000 after purchasing an additional 31,530 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $81.36 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.04, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.93. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $75.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.77.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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 is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.11%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, March 25th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information technology service provider to reacquire up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CTSH has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $92.00 to $81.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.87.

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.