Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH - Free Report) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,681,530 shares of the information technology service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 93,002 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.34% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $129,310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 127.7% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 454 shares of the information technology service provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 42.1% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 533 shares of the information technology service provider's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CTSH. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.19.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on CTSH
Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $77.17 on Wednesday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $82.46. The company has a market capitalization of $38.26 billion, a PE ratio of 17.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The company has a fifty day moving average of $79.09 and a 200-day moving average of $76.37.
Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 11.60%. The business had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Cognizant Technology Solutions's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.55%.
In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction of $400,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. The trade was a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.
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.
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