Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH) Stock Holdings Decreased by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV reduced its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 11.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,004,832 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after selling 254,296 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned approximately 0.41% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $153,370,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Unison Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 29,595 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $2,276,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 24,965 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $1,920,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 21.5% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 711 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,884 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 9,153 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $704,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on CTSH. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $88.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $103.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Fourteen equities research 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 has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.00.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

CTSH stock traded up $0.28 during trading on Monday, hitting $78.02. The stock had a trading volume of 355,806 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,545,189. The stock has a market cap of $38.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.98. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 1-year low of $65.52 and a 1-year high of $90.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a current ratio of 2.22. The company's 50 day moving average price is $78.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.85.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.11%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 25th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the information technology service provider to reacquire up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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.