Yacktman Asset Management LP Sells 184,374 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Yacktman Asset Management LP decreased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,173,699 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 184,374 shares during the quarter. Cognizant Technology Solutions comprises about 3.6% of Yacktman Asset Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Yacktman Asset Management LP owned about 1.03% of Cognizant Technology Solutions worth $390,769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,096 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $838,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at $211,000. Carret Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter worth $218,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 71,000 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $5,363,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arbor Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth about $728,000. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on CTSH shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Guggenheim began coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $80.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI raised 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 report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $90.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $66.90. 1,397,726 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,260,894. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1-year low of $58.47 and a 1-year high of $80.09. The firm has a market cap of $33.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.51. The company has a quick ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The information technology service provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.98% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.59 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change 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 dividend yield of 1.79%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.57%.

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.