Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation $CTSH Shares Bought by Swiss National Bank

Key Points

• Swiss National Bank increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.8% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 1,416,400 shares worth about $86.9 million.
• Cognizant reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.40 per share, with revenue of $5.41 billion and year-over-year revenue growth of 5.8%.
• The company also announced a $2 billion share buyback program and a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $64.26 price target.

Swiss National Bank increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 5.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,416,400 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 78,100 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.30% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $86,896,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 20,262,362 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,243,096,000 after purchasing an additional 2,633,683 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,534,198 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $840,669,000 after purchasing an additional 987,395 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $690,959,000. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth approximately $673,651,000. Finally, FIL Ltd grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 46.6% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 6,680,508 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $554,482,000 after buying an additional 2,122,600 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CTSH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $56.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, June 8th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Truist Financial began coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $66.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Evercore cut their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $100.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $64.26.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 0.3%

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $44.64 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.15 billion, a PE ratio of 9.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.87. The company's 50-day moving average is $47.37 and its 200-day moving average is $60.60. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $37.08 and a fifty-two week high of $87.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

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 return on equity of 17.50% and a net margin of 10.41%.The business had revenue of $5.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Cognizant Technology Solutions has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.630-5.770 EPS. Sell-side 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.70%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, May 18th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology service provider to repurchase up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Company Profile

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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