Short Interest in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Increases By 13.0%

Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,490,000 shares, an increase of 13.0% from the October 15th total of 13,710,000 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 3,000,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.2 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 127.7% in the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the first quarter worth $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.4% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 454 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CTSH. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com cut Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.47.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH traded up $0.26 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $77.37. 795,420 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,812,765. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 1 year low of $63.79 and a 1 year high of $82.41. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.93. The firm has a market cap of $38.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.99 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 11.60%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 26.55%.

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.