Invesco Ltd. Acquires 287,973 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,655,180 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after acquiring an additional 287,973 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned 2.15% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $819,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CTSH. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 87,689 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $6,748,000 after acquiring an additional 5,578 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,147,006 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $857,205,000 after buying an additional 123,745 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 32.3% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 5,878 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 1,436 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 40.5% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,491,808 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $114,694,000 after buying an additional 430,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $1,098,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of CTSH traded up $0.67 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $70.17. The stock had a trading volume of 3,195,183 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,597,295. The company's 50-day moving average is $80.43 and its 200 day moving average is $79.09. The company has a market capitalization of $34.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $63.79 and a 12-month high of $90.82. 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 (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. On average, equities analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 25th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information technology service provider to buy up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CTSH has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $93.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.44.

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.