Allstate Corp Boosts Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation $CTSH

Key Points

• Allstate Corp more than doubled its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter, increasing holdings by 103.1% to 38,190 shares valued at about $3.17 million.
• Analysts are cautious overall: several firms cut price targets, and the stock currently carries a consensus Hold rating with a $73 average price target.
• Cognizant reported solid recent results, beating earnings estimates with $1.40 EPS on revenue of $5.41 billion, while also declaring a quarterly dividend and authorizing a $2 billion share buyback.

Allstate Corp grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 103.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,190 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 19,382 shares during the period. Allstate Corp's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $3,170,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $214,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake 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 worth $44,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the first quarter worth $142,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.4% in the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 9,160 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $715,000 after buying an additional 935 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 231.4% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 29,667 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $2,315,000 after buying an additional 20,716 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CTSH shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $63.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Berenberg Bank decreased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $107.00 to $81.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Nomura lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $60.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $73.00.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $53.16 on Thursday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 1 year low of $45.48 and a 1 year high of $87.03. The company has a market cap of $25.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $56.55 and a 200-day moving average of $69.37.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information technology service provider reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.07. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 17.50%. The company had revenue of $5.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Cognizant Technology Solutions has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.630-5.770 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is 28.70%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase 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 reacquire up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is 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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