Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Position Trimmed by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems decreased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,061 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 469 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,619,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Creative Planning increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.6% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 44,423 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,429,000 after purchasing an additional 3,518 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.1% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,527 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $658,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the period. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.9% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 6,326 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at $1,972,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CTSH shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other 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 $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 3.1 %

CTSH stock opened at $84.82 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $90.82. The firm has a market cap of $41.95 billion, a PE ratio of 18.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 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.