Mizuho Markets Americas LLC Acquires New Shares in Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Mizuho Markets Americas LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 800,000 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock, valued at approximately $61,744,000. Cognizant Technology Solutions comprises 1.3% of Mizuho Markets Americas LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC owned about 0.16% of Cognizant Technology Solutions at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 13.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 58,045,823 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $4,254,178,000 after acquiring an additional 6,933,908 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 11.7% in the second quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 18,609,898 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,265,473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943,127 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.3% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 7,781,273 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $569,175,000 after buying an additional 101,078 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 1.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,565,974 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $378,483,000 after buying an additional 94,209 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,340,480 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $363,153,000 after acquiring an additional 142,225 shares during the period. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ CTSH opened at $77.11 on Friday. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.79 and a fifty-two week high of $82.41. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $76.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.83. The firm has a market cap of $38.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.05. 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 (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The information technology service provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.10. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 11.60%. The business had revenue of $5.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.99 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CTSH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $82.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised Cognizant Technology Solutions from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $73.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $78.83.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Profile

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.