Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 62,191 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation $CTSH

Key Points

• Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its Cognizant Technology Solutions stake by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 62,191 shares and leaving it with 282,122 shares valued at about $23.4 million.
• Analysts are cautious overall: despite several firms trimming price targets, the stock carries a consensus rating of “Hold” with an average target price of $73.50. The article notes 11 Buy ratings and 12 Hold ratings.
• Cognizant reported solid fundamentals, beating quarterly EPS estimates at $1.40 and posting 5.8% year-over-year revenue growth. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.33 per share and a new $2 billion share repurchase authorization.

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund decreased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 18.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 282,122 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 62,191 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.06% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $23,416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,322,430 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $192,763,000 after purchasing an additional 58,728 shares during the period. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 50,694 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $4,208,000 after purchasing an additional 11,470 shares during the last quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 53.9% during the fourth quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 32,133 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $2,667,000 after purchasing an additional 11,257 shares during the period. Brand Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth about $237,000. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 129.4% in the fourth quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 20,241 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $1,680,000 after purchasing an additional 11,419 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CTSH has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Dbs Bank decreased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $66.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Berenberg Bank reduced their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $107.00 to $81.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $62.00 price target (down from $71.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $98.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Eleven 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 stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $73.50.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $51.81 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The stock has a market cap of $24.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.26, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's 50-day moving average is $55.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 1 year low of $45.48 and a 1 year high of $87.03.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The information technology service provider reported $1.40 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 business had revenue of $5.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue 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, research analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

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

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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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