Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Declares Dividend Increase – $0.31 Per Share

Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 5th,Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of 0.31 per share by the information technology service provider on Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30.

Cognizant Technology Solutions has increased its dividend payment by an average of 7.7% annually over the last three years. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a dividend payout ratio of 23.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Cognizant Technology Solutions to earn $5.32 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 23.3%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $90.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $44.97 billion, a PE ratio of 20.11, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a twelve month low of $63.79 and a twelve month high of $90.82. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.11.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 16.78%. On average, research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on CTSH shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.67.

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.