Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Receives Sector Perform Rating from Royal Bank of Canada

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reissued by investment analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $93.00 target price on the information technology service provider’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 19.88% from the stock’s current price.

CTSH has been the topic of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $93.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.56.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $77.58 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. The firm has a market cap of $38.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.20, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.47. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a one year low of $63.79 and a one year high of $90.82.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, March 25th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information technology service provider to buy up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,028,485 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $4,539,290,000 after purchasing an additional 515,881 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 3.6% in the 3rd 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 buying an additional 867,176 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,437,687 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,032,239,000 after buying an additional 157,464 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,147,006 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $857,205,000 after acquiring an additional 123,745 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,655,180 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $819,383,000 after acquiring an additional 287,973 shares in the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.