Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Purchases 14,918 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 90.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,384 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,918 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 188.4% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 447 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on CTSH. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.39.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $79.12 on Monday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a one year low of $63.79 and a one year high of $90.82. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $82.38 and a 200 day moving average of $79.42. The company has a market capitalization of $39.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.54, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

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.