Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Price Target Increased to $82.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH – Free Report) had its price objective boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $81.00 to $82.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the information technology service provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on CTSH. Bank of America raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday. They set a buy rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $74.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set a neutral rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cognizant Technology Solutions presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $76.61.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on CTSH

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $76.87 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $72.39 and a 200-day moving average of $71.51. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a one year low of $62.14 and a one year high of $80.27. The company has a market cap of $38.22 billion, a PE ratio of 18.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 2.35.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 28.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total value of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 56.1% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,191,388 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $148,975,000 after purchasing an additional 787,808 shares in the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $48,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 11,462 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $779,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 43.5% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 22,555 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,534,000 after purchasing an additional 6,838 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 40,905 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $2,782,000 after purchasing an additional 2,181 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.