Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 665,305 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,758 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $51,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $91,678,000 after purchasing an additional 40,226 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter worth $155,000. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 21.8% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,634 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the third quarter valued at $225,000. Finally, Unigestion Holding SA raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 148.6% in the third quarter. Unigestion Holding SA now owns 10,256 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $792,000 after acquiring an additional 6,131 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at $3,126,052.42. This trade represents a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $79.23 on Monday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $82.46. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The business has a fifty day moving average of $78.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.06. The stock has a market cap of $39.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.53, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.06.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.99 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 17.08%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 26.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.35.

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.