Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Increases Stake in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) by 17.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 568,141 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 82,885 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.33% of Cognex worth $20,374,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Cognex during the third quarter worth approximately $342,000. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Cognex by 23.8% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 71,002 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,876,000 after purchasing an additional 13,643 shares in the last quarter. Wolverine Trading LLC purchased a new stake in Cognex in the 3rd quarter valued at $270,000. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in Cognex by 8.2% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 70,028 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $2,836,000 after purchasing an additional 5,280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognex by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 12,491 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $506,000 after buying an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognex

In other news, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.73, for a total transaction of $222,662.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,445.18. This trade represents a 59.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CGNX traded up $0.22 on Friday, hitting $23.77. 4,864,589 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,443,376. Cognex Co. has a 1-year low of $22.67 and a 1-year high of $53.13. The company has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a PE ratio of 38.97 and a beta of 1.56. The firm's 50-day moving average is $30.04 and its 200 day moving average is $35.90.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.01). Cognex had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 5.65%. On average, analysts anticipate that Cognex Co. will post 0.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. Cognex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CGNX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Cognex to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Cognex from $39.00 to $35.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Cognex from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Cognex from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.83.

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.