Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $91.25 and last traded at $88.70, with a volume of 1754 shares. The stock had previously closed at $90.70.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on CTSH. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen boosted 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. StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.42. 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 stock has a market cap of $43.40 billion, a PE ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.07.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. Research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction of $400,550.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,028,485 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $4,539,290,000 after purchasing an additional 515,881 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $1,928,405,000 after buying an additional 867,176 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,437,687 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,032,239,000 after buying an additional 157,464 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,147,006 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $857,205,000 after buying an additional 123,745 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,655,180 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $819,383,000 after buying an additional 287,973 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.