Jennison Associates LLC Lowers Stake in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX)

Jennison Associates LLC trimmed its holdings in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,017,829 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 89,716 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.59% of Cognex worth $41,222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Cognex by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,522,549 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $743,307,000 after buying an additional 188,485 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in Cognex by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,154,625 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $91,399,000 after purchasing an additional 53,267 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 4,018,539 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $187,907,000 after purchasing an additional 301,916 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cognex by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,309,827 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $61,248,000 after purchasing an additional 15,871 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Cognex by 33.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,621,629 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $75,828,000 after purchasing an additional 409,502 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.12% of the company's stock.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CGNX traded up $1.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $40.66. The stock had a trading volume of 591,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,269,245. The company has a 50 day moving average of $39.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.96. Cognex Co. has a twelve month low of $34.79 and a twelve month high of $53.13. The firm has a market cap of $6.97 billion, a PE ratio of 75.52 and a beta of 1.40.

Cognex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. This is a boost from Cognex's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Cognex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CGNX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Cognex from $46.00 to $42.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Cognex from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Truist Financial lowered Cognex from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $46.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Cognex from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of Cognex from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $47.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognex

In related news, CFO Dennis Fehr purchased 6,570 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $38.04 per share, with a total value of $249,922.80. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 6,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at $249,922.80. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Cognex

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.