BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Grows Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 332.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,038 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 33,084 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $3,310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,028,485 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $4,539,290,000 after buying an additional 515,881 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,437,687 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $1,032,239,000 after acquiring an additional 157,464 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,147,006 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $857,205,000 after purchasing an additional 123,745 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,655,180 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $819,383,000 after acquiring an additional 287,973 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $527,719,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $72.17. 2,892,672 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,600,300. The stock has a market cap of $35.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. The firm's 50 day moving average is $76.92 and its 200 day moving average is $78.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $90.82.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) 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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. Analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

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 issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.72%. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

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.