Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by HSBC

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) was downgraded by research analysts at HSBC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Friday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. They currently have a $33.00 price objective on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock. HSBC’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 1.20% from the company’s current price.

CGNX has been the topic of several other reports. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Cognex from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Cognex from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $37.00 target price (down from $43.00) on shares of Cognex in a research report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Cognex from $39.00 to $35.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Cognex from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong 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 $44.83.

Cognex Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Cognex stock opened at $33.40 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.67 billion, a PE ratio of 54.75 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $37.43 and its 200 day moving average is $38.77. Cognex has a 1 year low of $32.41 and a 1 year high of $53.13.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 5.65%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cognex will post 0.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Cognex

In related news, CTO Joerg Kuechen sold 2,934 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.75, for a total transaction of $110,758.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted 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 acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Cognex during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Cognex during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Cognex during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.12% of the company’s stock.

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.