Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Position Boosted by Assetmark Inc.

Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 585,627 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,705 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $45,035,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Graypoint LLC lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,795 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $369,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 4,336 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 4,441 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $342,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,338 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 8,704 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $669,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 0.7 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $84.29 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s 50-day moving average is $81.82 and its 200-day moving average is $79.16. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $90.82. 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 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 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CTSH. StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.67.

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.