Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Up 4.5% – What’s Next?

Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)’s share price was up 4.5% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $86.99 and last traded at $86.94. Approximately 4,080,575 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 13% from the average daily volume of 3,619,624 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 0.9 %

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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $81.98 and its 200 day moving average is $79.28. The stock has a market cap of $41.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 EPS 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $527,719,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 54.6% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 5,633,987 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $433,254,000 after acquiring an additional 1,990,515 shares during the period. AE Industrial Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth approximately $113,088,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 98.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,742,442 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $210,894,000 after purchasing an additional 1,363,570 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,303,355 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $254,028,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068,420 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by 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.