Howard Capital Management Inc. Has $4.55 Million Stock Position in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 59,100 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after buying an additional 443 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $4,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,972,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,187,850 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $91,678,000 after buying an additional 40,226 shares in the last quarter. CGN Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth about $1,294,000. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 50.7% during the 4th quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 429,660 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $33,041,000 after buying an additional 144,535 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 50,108 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,853,000 after buying an additional 17,134 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price 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. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction 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 approximately $3,126,052.42. This represents a 11.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $84.82 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.61. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $63.79 and a 52-week high of $90.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. The stock has a market cap of $41.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.81, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.07.

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, 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%. Analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.49%.

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.