United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund Acquires New Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Key Points

• United Super Pty Ltd has acquired approximately 9,700 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions, valued at around $742,000, marking a significant investment during the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Pacer Advisors Inc., Capital Research Global Investors, and GAMMA Investing LLC, have dramatically increased their stakes in Cognizant Technology Solutions, indicating growing institutional interest.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed views on Cognizant Technology Solutions, with recent ratings ranging from "buy" to "hold," and a consensus target price of $85.88.

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 9,700 shares of the information technology service provider's stock, valued at approximately $742,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 12,350 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $950,000 after buying an additional 1,922 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 7,329 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $564,000 after buying an additional 823 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 6,607 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $508,000 after buying an additional 973 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 26,093 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $2,007,000 after buying an additional 3,201 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 0.9%

CTSH traded up $0.67 during trading on Monday, hitting $71.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,344,570 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,714,805. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $77.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.41. The stock has a market cap of $35.13 billion, a PE ratio of 14.48, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.90. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a twelve month low of $65.52 and a twelve month high of $90.82.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on CTSH. Evercore ISI started coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Guggenheim upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $103.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $85.88.

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.