Argent Advisors Inc. Has $969,000 Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Argent Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,607 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Argent Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $969,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CTSH. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $91,678,000 after buying an additional 40,226 shares in the last quarter. CGN Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $1,294,000. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 50.7% during the fourth quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 429,660 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $33,041,000 after buying an additional 144,535 shares in the last quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 24.4% during the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 436,509 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $33,568,000 after buying an additional 85,539 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% during the fourth quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 50,108 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,853,000 after buying an additional 17,134 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $80.02 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year 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. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $82.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) 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 the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. Equities analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTSH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased 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 research note on Wednesday, March 12th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Barclays boosted their target price 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. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.50.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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.