StockNews.com Lowers Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on CTSH. Needham & Company LLC restated a hold rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Daiwa America upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a buy rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $77.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $75.84 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $71.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.46. The company has a market capitalization of $37.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a one year low of $62.14 and a one year high of $80.27.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 11.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 28.85%.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at $3,419,812.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Spire Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 79.1% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 437 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 42.1% in the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 533 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.