Montecito Bank & Trust Sells 470 Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH)

Montecito Bank & Trust reduced its stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. (NASDAQ:CTSH) by 11.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,747 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock after selling 470 shares during the quarter. Montecito Bank & Trust’s holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions were worth $255,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,111,915 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $3,860,483,000 after buying an additional 7,445,089 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 532,677 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $39,242,000 after buying an additional 38,526 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,523 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 16,795 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,231,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at $1,786,000. Institutional investors own 92.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 6,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.66, for a total transaction of $495,584.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 46,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,812.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 0.0 %

CTSH stock traded up $0.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $75.50. 656,263 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,112,987. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.46. The company has a 50-day moving average of $70.71 and a 200-day moving average of $71.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.54 billion, a PE ratio of 18.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. has a 1 year low of $62.14 and a 1 year high of $80.27.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information technology service provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm had revenue of $4.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Cognizant Technology Solutions Co. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 20th. Cognizant Technology Solutions’s payout ratio is 28.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTSH has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. 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, April 30th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions in a research note on Monday, June 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.06.

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.