Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

CTSH has been the subject of several other reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.44.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 1.2 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $77.21 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $71.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.46. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a one year low of $62.14 and a one year high of $80.27.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the second quarter valued at about $4,714,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 56.1% in the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,191,388 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $148,975,000 after purchasing an additional 787,808 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.1% during the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 11,462 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $779,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 43.5% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 22,555 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,534,000 after acquiring an additional 6,838 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

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.