Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Purchases 6,488 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 222,615 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,488 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $17,631,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 276.9% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,588,528 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $122,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,033 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $126,940,000 after acquiring an additional 978,579 shares during the period. ING Groep NV increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 61.5% during the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,478,364 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $191,280,000 after acquiring an additional 943,372 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,985,816 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,928,405,000 after acquiring an additional 867,176 shares during the period. Finally, Mizuho Markets Americas LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at $61,744,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $90.70 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $44.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $63.79 and a 12-month high of $90.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.11.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $0.31 dividend. 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. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CTSH shares. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho raised their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Sixteen research 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.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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.