Keystone Investors PTE Ltd. Acquires New Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Keystone Investors PTE Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 46,230 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,555,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 188.4% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 447 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 74.7% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 477 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTSH has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price 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, Mizuho upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.71.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 2.0 %

CTSH stock opened at $77.94 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.47. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $90.82. The company has a market capitalization of $38.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company 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 of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

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.