Analyst Sees Faster Growth For Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp.'s

revenue growth rate hit a trough in the third quarter and will accelerate to 21 percent in 2015, an analyst said Tuesday. Deutsche Bank's Bryan Keane raised his target 19 percent on the information technology consulting and outsourcing concern to $69 a share and called it his "top pick" in its sector. Teaneck, N.J.-based Cognizant is down nearly 3 percent in the past month, and changed hands recently at $51.60 a share, up $1.09. The company, which combines service based at client locations with call centers in India and elsewhere, last month posted third-quarter revenue growth of 11.9 percent or $2.58 billion. Teaneck, N.J.-based Cognizant at the time forecast 2014 revenue of between $10.13 billion and $10.16 billion, up about 11 percent from $8.84 billion a year earlier. Keane said the company's 20 percent growth in employee head count in the third quarter versus a year earlier "is an early positive indicator" of its likely 2015 growth rate. The company completed its $2.7 billion acquisition of privately held TriZetto Corp. which provides IT services to the health care sector. Keane cited the TriZetto deal in boosting his 2015 earnings estimate to $3 a share, from $2.87. Analysts on average expect 2015 earnings of $2.99 a share, with revenue growing 22 percent to $12.39 billion.