Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Makes New $907,000 Investment in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 11,796 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock, valued at approximately $907,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 38.7% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 24,408 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,877,000 after buying an additional 6,808 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 63,309 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $4,868,000 after buying an additional 2,698 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 2,738 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Hendershot Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Hendershot Investments Inc. now owns 222,052 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $17,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,720 shares during the period. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 131,676 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $10,126,000 after purchasing an additional 13,465 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $89.58 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $63.79 and a 1 year high of $89.63. The company has a market cap of $44.42 billion, a PE ratio of 19.86, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50-day moving average is $79.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.92.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is 26.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research 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 has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Company 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.