8,178 Shares in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Bought by Fiduciary Alliance LLC

Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 8,178 shares of the information technology service provider's stock, valued at approximately $626,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CTSH. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 19,931 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,533,000 after acquiring an additional 1,360 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth about $214,000. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $443,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 28.3% in the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 8,069 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $621,000 after acquiring an additional 1,782 shares during the period. Finally, Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of CTSH traded down $0.42 on Thursday, hitting $79.32. 3,192,420 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,576,479. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $63.79 and a 1 year high of $90.82. The stock's 50 day moving average is $75.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.98.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.11%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CTSH shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price 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. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group dropped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. TD Securities increased their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Susquehanna upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $77.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with 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 price target of $85.00.

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.