Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Buys 274,548 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 255.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 382,051 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 274,548 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned 0.08% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $28,856,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CTSH. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $374,413,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 84.6% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 13,148,963 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $801,166,000 after acquiring an additional 6,027,057 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 69.3% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 4,368,034 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $295,978,000 after acquiring an additional 1,788,329 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 53.4% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,551,475 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $203,107,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,176,000. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Societe Generale reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $80.00 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.65.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Down 1.9 %

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock opened at $69.26 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $75.47 and its 200 day moving average is $72.54. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 12-month low of $58.09 and a 12-month high of $80.09. The company has a market capitalization of $34.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.49, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.06.

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. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.98% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is an increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total transaction of $69,354.00. Following the transaction, 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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

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.