Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Raises Holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 17.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 25,931 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,917 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the second quarter worth $25,000. Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 127.7% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.4% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 454 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on CTSH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $79.47.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $80.75 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $82.41. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market cap of $40.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.05.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.99 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 11.60%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.55%.

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.