LBP AM SA purchased a new stake in shares of Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 11,353 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $407,000.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Cognex by 123.1% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 714 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Cognex during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 885 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Cognex during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Clean Yield Group grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 1,686.7% during the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 1,072 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.12% of the company's stock.
Cognex Stock Performance
Shares of CGNX traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $31.15. 1,705,329 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,193,744. The company has a market cap of $5.29 billion, a PE ratio of 51.07 and a beta of 1.43. Cognex Co. has a 52-week low of $30.04 and a 52-week high of $53.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $35.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.88.
Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.01). Cognex had a return on equity of 5.65% and a net margin of 11.61%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cognex Co. will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.
Cognex Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. Cognex's payout ratio is presently 52.46%.
Insider Activity at Cognex
In other Cognex news, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.73, for a total value of $222,662.19. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,566 shares in the company, valued at $149,445.18. This trade represents a 59.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CGNX shares. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Cognex to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Truist Financial reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $37.00 price objective (down from $43.00) on shares of Cognex in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Cognex from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Cognex from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Cognex in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $44.83.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on CGNX
Cognex Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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