Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.8%, now owning 192,074 shares worth approximately $14.68 million.
• Cognizant reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.31, exceeding estimates and reflecting an 8.1% revenue increase year-over-year.
• The company has recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.8% and a payout ratio of 25.20%.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 7.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 192,074 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,925 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $14,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 13.3% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 12,077,445 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $923,925,000 after acquiring an additional 1,422,265 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 117.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,805,893 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $520,651,000 after purchasing an additional 3,677,145 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,000,421 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $461,439,000 after purchasing an additional 392,429 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 16.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,960,206 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $458,340,000 after purchasing an additional 831,276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,373,164 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $336,296,000 after buying an additional 309,919 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of CTSH stock traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $70.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,538,845 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,640,384. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 52-week low of $65.52 and a 52-week high of $90.82. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $75.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 2.41. The stock has a market cap of $34.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.90.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.77% and a net margin of 11.89%. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.17 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.17 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CTSH. Susquehanna upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $77.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, July 18th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $98.00 to $93.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $103.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.56.

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.