Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Bought by Intrust Bank NA

Intrust Bank NA lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,205 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the period. Intrust Bank NA’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $554,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $527,719,000. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 867,176 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,784,668 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $214,141,000 after acquiring an additional 705,946 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,028,485 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $4,539,290,000 after purchasing an additional 515,881 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,921,900 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $224,694,000 after purchasing an additional 443,536 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $75.90 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $90.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $82.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.49. 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 company has a market cap of $37.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced 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 predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 EPS for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.49%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, March 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the information technology service provider to repurchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CTSH shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $93.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.56.

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.