Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on CTSH. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $77.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $70.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cognizant Technology Solutions has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.63.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Cognizant Technology Solutions stock traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $66.25. 7,399,746 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,943,487. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 1-year low of $60.26 and a 1-year high of $80.09. The company has a quick ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $72.31 and a 200 day moving average of $72.46. The company has a market capitalization of $32.98 billion, a PE ratio of 15.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.08.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The information technology service provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.72 billion. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.84% and a return on equity of 17.48%. The company’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In other Cognizant Technology Solutions news, EVP Kathryn Diaz sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $69,354.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,312 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $640,522.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CTSH. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 26.5% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 773 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.4% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 198,317 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $13,434,000 after buying an additional 15,441 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. raised its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.4% during the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 64,251 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $4,352,000 after buying an additional 1,499 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 434,244 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $29,416,000 after buying an additional 4,092 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 38,932 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $2,637,000 after acquiring an additional 3,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.44% 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.