Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation $CTSH Shares Acquired by Auto Owners Insurance Co

Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 8,200.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 849,256 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 839,024 shares during the quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $7,049,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the 4th quarter worth approximately $690,959,000. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions in the fourth quarter worth about $673,651,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the third quarter valued at approximately $201,834,000. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at $234,671,000. Finally, FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 46.6% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 6,680,508 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $554,482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,122,600 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of CTSH opened at $43.70 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation has a 52-week low of $43.40 and a 52-week high of $87.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.71 billion, a PE ratio of 9.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.81.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The information technology service provider reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.07. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 17.50%. The business had revenue of $5.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.41 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Cognizant Technology Solutions has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.630-5.770 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation will post 5.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, May 18th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information technology service provider to buy up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 28.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective (down from $71.00) on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup raised their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $72.50.

About Cognizant Technology Solutions

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ: CTSH) is a global professional services company that provides information technology, consulting and business process services to large enterprises. Its core offerings include digital engineering, application development and maintenance, cloud migration and managed services, data analytics and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and industry-specific solutions. Cognizant works with clients to design and implement technology-enabled transformations that address customer experience, operational efficiency and new product and service delivery.

Founded in the 1990s and headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey, Cognizant has grown into a multinational organization with delivery centers and operations across the Americas, Europe, and Asia.