Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Sold by Dearborn Partners LLC

Dearborn Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,089 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 834 shares during the quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $468,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of 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 worth $126,940,000 after purchasing an additional 978,579 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV grew its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 61.5% during the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,478,364 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $191,280,000 after buying an additional 943,372 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,985,816 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,928,405,000 after buying an additional 867,176 shares during the period. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,744,000. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,784,668 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $214,141,000 after acquiring an additional 705,946 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 1.8 %

CTSH stock opened at $82.47 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $82.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.38. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52 week low of $63.79 and a 52 week high of $90.82. The company has a market cap of $40.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. On average, research analysts expect 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley increased 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 note on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.67.

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.