Saratoga Research & Investment Management Cuts Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Saratoga Research & Investment Management decreased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 48.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,529 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 7,126 shares during the quarter. Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $552,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter worth $216,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 14.9% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 126,168 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $8,547,000 after acquiring an additional 16,400 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.7% during the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,385 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $500,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter worth $219,000. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 236,783 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $16,040,000 after acquiring an additional 870 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $68.00. 5,939,406 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,625,078. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $62.14 and a fifty-two week high of $80.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.04. The business’s 50 day moving average is $67.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.35. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The information technology service provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.84% and a return on equity of 17.48%. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. StockNews.com lowered Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $77.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions 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.