Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Royal Bank of Canada Analyst Says

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) had its target price raised by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $82.00 to $93.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the information technology service provider’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 7.89% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on CTSH. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded Cognizant Technology Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Cognizant Technology Solutions from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.22.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of CTSH stock opened at $86.20 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $79.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $77.52. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a 12 month low of $63.79 and a 12 month high of $87.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The information technology service provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 11.60%. Equities research analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognizant Technology Solutions

In related news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 5,000 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.11, for a total transaction of $400,550.00. Following 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 76.3% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 15,037 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $1,156,000 after buying an additional 6,510 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,011 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $328,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 107,396 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $8,259,000 after buying an additional 5,976 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Hedge funds and other 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.