Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Cognizant Technology Solutions “Hold” on average: Of 24 brokerages, 13 recommend holding, 10 rate it a buy and one assigns a sell rating. The average 12-month price target is $63.
• Recent performance was broadly stable: Quarterly revenue reached $5.48 billion, up 4.5% year over year, while EPS of $1.37 narrowly missed estimates by $0.01. The company guided to fiscal 2026 EPS of $5.70–$5.82.
• Cognizant is returning capital to shareholders: It declared a $0.33 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 2.2% yield, and authorized a $2 billion share-buyback program covering up to 9% of outstanding shares.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twenty-four brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $63.00.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CTSH shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $55.00 price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Friday, July 24th. HSBC lowered their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 target price (up from $45.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Evercore lowered their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $100.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wedbush upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $56.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Monday, June 8th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $214,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 118.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 569 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the first quarter valued at approximately $142,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.4% during the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 9,160 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $715,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 231.4% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 29,667 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 20,716 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $58.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.18. The firm has a market cap of $26.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.82. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 52 week low of $37.08 and a 52 week high of $87.03. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $47.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The information technology service provider reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.01). Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 10.26%.The company had revenue of $5.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.48 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Cognizant Technology Solutions has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.700-5.820 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.39%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, May 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the information technology service provider to repurchase up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

Cognizant Technology Solutions NASDAQ: CTSH is a global professional services company that provides information technology, consulting and business process services to large enterprises. Its core offerings include digital engineering, application development and maintenance, cloud migration and managed services, data analytics and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and industry-specific solutions. Cognizant works with clients to design and implement technology-enabled transformations that address customer experience, operational efficiency and new product and service delivery.

Founded in the 1990s and headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey, Cognizant has grown into a multinational organization with delivery centers and operations across the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

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