Janus Henderson Group PLC Buys 2,000 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 3.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 60,813 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $4,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 127.7% during the 3rd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 47.4% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 454 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 42.1% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 533 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,126,052.42. The trade was a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ CTSH opened at $80.06 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $39.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.26. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $63.79 and a 12-month high of $82.41.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 17.08%. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on CTSH. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. 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. Jefferies Financial Group began 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 for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.47.

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.