Pensionfund Sabic Acquires 6,000 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Pensionfund Sabic increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 36.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,500 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Pensionfund Sabic’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $1,730,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 19,850.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,016,114 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $205,096,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000,996 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 152.8% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,120,012 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $146,132,000 after buying an additional 1,281,236 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 276.9% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,588,528 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $122,603,000 after buying an additional 1,167,033 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $126,940,000 after acquiring an additional 978,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 61.5% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,478,364 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $191,280,000 after acquiring an additional 943,372 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of CTSH traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $76.55. The stock had a trading volume of 171,085 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,618,578. The firm has a market cap of $37.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.07. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $82.46. The business has a fifty day moving average of $78.93 and a 200 day moving average of $75.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 26.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,126,052.42. The trade was a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on CTSH. StockNews.com upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Fourteen research 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 company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $81.19.

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.