Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 257.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 164,857 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after buying an additional 118,723 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $12,678,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter worth approximately $527,719,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 5,633,987 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $433,254,000 after buying an additional 1,990,515 shares during the last quarter. AE Industrial Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $113,088,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 98.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,742,442 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $210,894,000 after acquiring an additional 1,363,570 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.8% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,303,355 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $254,028,000 after acquiring an additional 1,068,420 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

CTSH traded down $0.58 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $79.74. 2,106,724 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,578,020. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $75.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.98. The company has a market cap of $39.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.68, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.98. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $63.79 and a twelve month high of $90.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The business had revenue of $5.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is 26.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CTSH. Barclays reduced their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $103.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Mizuho raised Cognizant Technology Solutions to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. TD Securities raised their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $85.00.

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.