Achmea Investment Management B.V. Sells 5,817 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. reduced its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 168,103 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 5,817 shares during the quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V.'s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $12,860,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 21.0% during the first quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 10,531 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $806,000 after buying an additional 1,827 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 40.7% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 28,047 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $2,146,000 after buying an additional 8,116 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $10,059,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,814 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 591 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on CTSH shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $88.00 to $98.00 in a report on Monday, May 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $93.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Mizuho upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $85.00.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH traded up $2.40 on Tuesday, reaching $80.43. 3,362,222 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,559,807. The firm has a market cap of $39.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.98. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 12 month low of $65.52 and a 12 month high of $90.82. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $78.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.22 and a quick ratio of 2.22.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 11.73%. The company's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.11%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 25th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology service provider to purchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.