Vest Financial LLC Has $32.20 Million Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Vest Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 14.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 418,702 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,453 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $32,198,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 3rd quarter worth $1,972,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% in the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $91,678,000 after purchasing an additional 40,226 shares during the period. CGN Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth about $1,294,000. Matthews International Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 50,108 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,853,000 after purchasing an additional 17,134 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 101,420 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $7,828,000 after buying an additional 11,349 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction of $400,550.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CTSH. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.22.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $86.20 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The company’s fifty day moving average is $79.44 and its 200-day moving average is $77.52. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52 week low of $63.79 and a 52 week high of $87.61.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 17.08%. Equities research analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.31 dividend. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. 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.