Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH) Raises Dividend to $0.33 Per Share

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of 0.33 per share by the information technology service provider on Thursday, February 26th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. This is a 6.5% increase from Cognizant Technology Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31.

Cognizant Technology Solutions has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 6 years. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a dividend payout ratio of 22.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Cognizant Technology Solutions to earn $5.35 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 23.2%.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Trading Up 3.0%

NASDAQ:CTSH opened at $76.71 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 2.36. Cognizant Technology Solutions has a one year low of $65.15 and a one year high of $90.82. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $82.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.99.

Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ:CTSH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The information technology service provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.03. Cognizant Technology Solutions had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 10.20%.The company had revenue of $5.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Cognizant Technology Solutions has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.560-5.700 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Cognizant Technology Solutions will post 4.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO John Sunshin Kim sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 36,149 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,891,920. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ravi Kumar Singisetti sold 2,950 shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.06, for a total transaction of $250,927.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 75,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,397,277.54. This trade represents a 3.77% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,434 shares of company stock valued at $2,460,809. 0.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cognizant Technology Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CTSH. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in Cognizant Technology Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Cognizant Technology Solutions by 118.8% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 569 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions during the first quarter valued at approximately $142,000. Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 7.7% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 62,720 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $4,894,000 after buying an additional 4,492 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions by 40.9% during the second quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 4,501 shares of the information technology service provider’s stock worth $351,000 after acquiring an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. 92.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.