Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) Short Interest Update

Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 17,960,000 shares, a growth of 11.6% from the November 15th total of 16,090,000 shares. Currently, 3.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 3,160,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.7 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total value of $400,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 39,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,126,052.42. The trade was a 11.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cognizant Technology Solutions

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CTSH. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 19,850.5% in the second quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,016,114 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $205,096,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000,996 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.7% during the second quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 18,609,898 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $1,265,473,000 after buying an additional 1,943,127 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 152.8% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,120,012 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $146,132,000 after buying an additional 1,281,236 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 276.9% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,588,528 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $122,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,033 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 146.9% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,644,723 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $126,940,000 after acquiring an additional 978,579 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTSH opened at $80.70 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 1-year low of $63.79 and a 1-year high of $82.41. The company has a market capitalization of $40.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.85, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50-day moving average of $78.34 and a 200-day moving average of $74.74.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.10. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 17.08%. The company had revenue of $5.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CTSH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a report on Thursday, September 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $79.47.

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.