Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Invests $563,000 in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,320 shares of the information technology service provider's stock, valued at approximately $563,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 114,483 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $9,067,000 after purchasing an additional 6,060 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $526,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 1,208,981 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $92,971,000 after acquiring an additional 39,667 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,901,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 18,446 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $1,491,000 after acquiring an additional 1,202 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company's stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ CTSH traded up $0.13 on Monday, hitting $81.57. The stock had a trading volume of 2,585,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,564,183. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $75.00 and a 200-day moving average of $78.87. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $90.82. The company has a market capitalization of $40.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.23 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 company had revenue of $5.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's payout ratio is 26.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on CTSH shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price target 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. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.