Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Sold by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 492,934 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 12,402 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $37,907,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at $1,098,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $13,747,000. Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $408,000. Unison Advisors LLC increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 29,595 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 26,093 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $2,007,000 after purchasing an additional 3,201 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CTSH shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Mizuho raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 1.0 %

CTSH stock opened at $70.17 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $34.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $80.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a twelve month low of $63.79 and a twelve month high of $90.82.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its earnings results 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.31 dividend. This is a positive change 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 1.77%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, March 25th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the information technology service provider to purchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.