NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Purchases 3,484 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 103,765 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,484 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $7,980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 19,931 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $1,533,000 after buying an additional 1,360 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $214,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 21.2% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,535 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 24.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,179 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,962,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH traded down $0.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $80.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,241,271 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,582,996. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year high of $90.82. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.95. The stock has a market cap of $39.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.93.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $5.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share 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 of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.11%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

CTSH has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Susquehanna raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $77.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays dropped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $103.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.00.

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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.