Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Sold by Calamos Advisors LLC

Calamos Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 139,595 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 1,823 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $10,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTSH. Vision Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vision Capital Management Inc. now owns 38,612 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $2,916,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 29.9% in the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 651 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 3,756 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 33.5% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 630 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 26.5% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 773 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTSH opened at $67.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $33.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.25 and a current ratio of 2.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $74.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.51. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $58.09 and a 1 year high of $80.09.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The information technology service provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.83% and a net margin of 10.98%. The company’s revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. This is a positive change from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $69,354.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,312 shares in the company, valued at $640,522.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on CTSH shares. Guggenheim started coverage on Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Societe Generale restated a “sell” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.94.

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.