Computer Sciences Co. (CSC) Cut to “Market Performâ€ at Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo downgraded shares of Computer Sciences Co. (NYSE:CSC) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning, The Fly ^[1] reports. The brokerage currently has $33.00 target price on the stock, down from their previous target price of $34.00. The analysts noted that the move was a valuation call.

Shares of Computer Sciences (NYSE:CSC ^[2]) traded down 0.93% during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $33.12. 23,741 shares of the stock traded hands. Computer Sciences has a 52-week low of $24.27 and a 52-week high of $34.49. The company has a market cap of $4.57 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $31.83 and a 200-day moving average of $29.92.

Computer Sciences (NYSE:CSC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 9th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.02. The business earned $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.85 billion. The business's revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.18 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Computer Sciences will post $2.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 5th will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 1st. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%.

In related news, CEO John M. Lawrie sold 43,814 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.53, for a total value of $1,381,455.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 378,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,924,614.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link ^[3]. Also, CEO John M. Lawrie sold 16,770 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.65, for a tota l transaction of $514,000.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 343,878 shares in the company, valued at $10,539,860.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here ^[4].

Several large investors have added to or reduced their stakes in CSC. Korea Investment CORP raised its stake in Computer Sciences by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 57,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,875,000 after buying an additional 3,300 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Computer Sciences by 316.3% in the fourth quarter. Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 97,502 shares of the company's stock worth $3,186,000 after buying an additional 74,082 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Computer Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $2,290,000. CI Global Investments Inc. raised its position in Computer Sciences by 194.5% in the fourth quarter. CI Global Investments Inc. now owns 5,457,024 shares of the company's stock worth $178,336,000 after buying an additional 3,604,024 shares during the period. Fina lly, Meeder Asset Management purchased a new position in Computer Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $2,981,000.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Citigroup Inc. cut shares of Computer Sciences from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Friday, February 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a hold rating on shares of Computer Sciences in a report on Monday, January 4th. Cowen and Company initiated coverage on shares of Computer Sciences in a report on Thursday, February 18th. They issued a market perform rating and a $29.00 target price on the stock. Goldman Sachs reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Computer Sciences in a report on Wednesday, March 9th. Finally, Barclays cut shares of Computer Sciences from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and cut their target price for the company from $76.00 to $35.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the c ompany. The stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $49.73.

Computer Sciences Corporation (NYSE:CSC ^[5]) is a global provider of information technology (IT) and professional services and solutions. The Company operates through three segments: Global Business Services (GBS), which is a provider of various technology solutions, including consulting, applications services and software; Global Infrastructure Services (GIS), which provides solutions, such as managed and virtual desktop solutions, and data center management, and North American Public Sector (NPS), which delivers IT, mission and operations-related services.

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