Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Stephens

Stephens reaffirmed their equal weight rating on shares of Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $45.00 target price on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on CGNX. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Cognex from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Cognex from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Cognex from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a sell rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. HSBC raised Cognex from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $52.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Cognex from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cognex currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $49.62.

Cognex Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CGNX opened at $38.75 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $46.55 and its 200 day moving average is $42.98. The firm has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.81 and a beta of 1.42. Cognex has a 52-week low of $34.28 and a 52-week high of $53.13.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.03. Cognex had a return on equity of 4.97% and a net margin of 9.29%. The firm had revenue of $239.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $240.33 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Cognex will post 0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.72%.

Insider Activity at Cognex

In related news, Director Dianne M. Parrotte acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $38.62 per share, for a total transaction of $77,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $437,950.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognex

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 94.4% in the first quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 589 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its stake in shares of Cognex by 303.1% during the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 770 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cognex by 1,239.7% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 777 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 719 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Cognex by 276.1% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,087 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Cognex by 71.8% during the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,295 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.12% of the company’s stock.

Cognex Company Profile

Cognex Corporation provides machine vision products that capture and analyze visual information to automate manufacturing and distribution tasks worldwide. Its machine vision products are used to automate the manufacturing and tracking of discrete items, including mobile phones, electric vehicle batteries, and e-commerce packages by locating, identifying, inspecting, and measuring them during the manufacturing or distribution process.