Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Stock Position Boosted by Jones Financial Companies Lllp

Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 78.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,144 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,139 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $2,472,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $126,940,000 after buying an additional 978,579 shares during the period. ING Groep NV lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 61.5% in the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 2,478,364 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $191,280,000 after purchasing an additional 943,372 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,985,816 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,928,405,000 after acquiring an additional 867,176 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at approximately $61,744,000. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. raised its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,784,668 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $214,141,000 after acquiring an additional 705,946 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $84.29 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year high of $90.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $81.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.16.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 11.35%. Equities analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 27.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on CTSH. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.67.

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.