Wedmont Private Capital Acquires 1,783 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 60.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,731 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,783 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $360,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. FIL Ltd grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 3,011,825 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $227,483,000 after purchasing an additional 120,109 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 197.7% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 8,056 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $608,000 after purchasing an additional 5,350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at $3,419,812.82. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $75.94 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.50. The company has a market cap of $37.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $62.14 and a fifty-two week high of $80.27. 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 (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company’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 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $73.00 to $75.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $76.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.44.

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.