Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Given New $103.00 Price Target at Barclays

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) had its target price boosted by Barclays from $95.00 to $103.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the information technology service provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.67.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $88.08 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.09. The company has a market capitalization of $43.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.07. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a one year low of $63.79 and a one year high of $88.40. The company’s 50-day moving average is $79.83 and its 200 day moving average is $77.84.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter worth approximately $527,719,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 5,633,987 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $433,254,000 after buying an additional 1,990,515 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 276.9% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,588,528 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $122,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,033 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $126,940,000 after acquiring an additional 978,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 61.5% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,478,364 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $191,280,000 after acquiring an additional 943,372 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

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.