Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation $CTSH Shares Sold by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Pzena Investment Management cut its Cognizant stake by 6.5%, selling about 1.71 million shares in the third quarter. It still held 24.82 million shares, worth approximately $1.43 billion, making Cognizant its second-largest holding.
• Cognizant beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $1.49 versus $1.46 expected and revenue of $5.66 billion, up 4.6% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share, equivalent to a 2.0% yield.
• Analyst sentiment was mixed but leaned toward a Hold: 10 analysts rated the stock Buy and 14 Hold, with an average price target of $68.17.

Pzena Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 6.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,815,635 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 1,713,537 shares during the period. Cognizant Technology Solutions makes up approximately 4.2% of Pzena Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned 5.51% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $1,425,410,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Marquette Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 183.9% in the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 545 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC boosted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 102.4% during the first quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 599 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the period. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the third quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CTSH shares. Susquehanna set a $82.00 price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $67.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a "hold" rating and issued a $60.00 target price (up from $54.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $68.17.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $65.83 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.83. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 1 year low of $37.08 and a 1 year high of $87.03. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $62.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 2.22.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The information technology service provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.75% and a return on equity of 17.72%. The firm had revenue of $5.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is currently 24.09%.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation is a global information technology services and consulting company that helps organizations modernize their technology infrastructure, operations and customer experiences. The company serves businesses across industries including financial services, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, retail and communications.

Cognizant's services include consulting, application development and modernization, cloud computing, data and artificial intelligence, digital engineering, cybersecurity and business process services.

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