Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Stake Lessened by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,061 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 469 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CTSH. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.6% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 44,423 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,429,000 after acquiring an additional 3,518 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.1% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,527 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $658,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.9% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 6,326 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $488,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at about $1,972,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

CTSH stock opened at $84.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.61. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $90.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.95 billion, a PE ratio of 18.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.07.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted 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 net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. Analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. The trade was a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CTSH shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.67.

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.