Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Shares Acquired by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 43.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 22,555 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,838 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $1,534,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $3,860,483,000 after acquiring an additional 7,445,089 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 16,795 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,231,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 373.8% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 76,159 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $5,752,000 after purchasing an additional 60,086 shares during the period. Duality Advisers LP bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,687,000. Finally, Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the first quarter worth approximately $233,000. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTSH opened at $77.14 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 52-week low of $62.14 and a 52-week high of $80.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.54, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.46, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $71.40.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 11.39%. The firm had revenue of $4.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on CTSH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total value of $495,584.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,419,812.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.