Toth Financial Advisory Corp Acquires 311 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 0.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 35,359 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 311 shares during the quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. IFG Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 45.1% in the fourth quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 67,119 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $5,070,000 after acquiring an additional 20,874 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 36.0% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,227,411 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $83,145,000 after purchasing an additional 324,638 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,860,483,000 after purchasing an additional 7,445,089 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 532,677 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $39,242,000 after purchasing an additional 38,526 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,523 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CTSH traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $68.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,939,406 shares, 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’s 50 day moving average is $67.13 and its 200-day moving average is $72.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The firm has a market cap 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.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on CTSH shares. Guggenheim started coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.