Nilsine Partners LLC Sells 277 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Nilsine Partners LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 7.4% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,479 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 277 shares during the period. Nilsine Partners LLC’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Spire Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 79.1% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 437 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter worth $43,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $69,354.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,312 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $640,522.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CTSH. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Societe Generale reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $67.00 price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Friday, January 5th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $77.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down from $87.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Monday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.63.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

NASDAQ CTSH traded down $0.85 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $65.68. 3,857,823 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,285,505. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.64, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.06. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $58.47 and a 12-month high of $80.09. 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 business has a 50 day moving average of $73.09 and a 200-day moving average of $72.56.

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

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.