Moffett Nathanson Downgrades Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) to Underperform

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH – Get Rating) was downgraded by equities researchers at Moffett Nathanson from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $60.00 target price on the information technology service provider’s stock, down from their prior target price of $70.00. Moffett Nathanson’s target price indicates a potential downside of 4.37% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, October 12th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. TheStreet downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 29th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $78.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.95.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $62.74 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 12-month low of $51.33 and a 12-month high of $93.47. The firm has a market cap of $32.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.94, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.05.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 2nd. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.17. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 12.11% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The business had revenue of $4.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.01 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, Director Leo S. Jr. Mackay sold 3,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.79, for a total transaction of $174,207.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 28,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,494,484.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 77.0% during the second quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 393 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 75.6% during the third quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management now owns 504 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 492.9% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 587 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 55.2% during the third quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 731 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.12% of the company’s stock.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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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; Healthcare; Products and Resources; and Communications, Media and Technology.