Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp's stock experienced a significant pre-market plunge of 6.99% on Wednesday. The sharp decline occurred following the company's release of its fourth-quarter and full-year financial results.

Despite reporting adjusted earnings per share of $1.35, beating the IBES estimate of $1.32, and revenue of $5.333 billion, surpassing the $5.310 billion estimate, investor sentiment turned negative. The company's CFO noted during a conference call that within the communications and media sector, they have seen some impact from broader end market softness, particularly in North America, which appears to have raised concerns about future growth prospects.

While Cognizant issued first-quarter revenue guidance of $5.36 to $5.44 billion, in line with analyst expectations of $5.35 billion, and raised its quarterly dividend by 6.5%, the market focused on the potential challenges in key segments. The pre-market sell-off suggests investors are weighing the current earnings beat against concerns about softening demand in certain end markets.