Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s Why

Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) shares reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $31.95 and last traded at $31.79, with a volume of 1270903 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.80.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $37.00 price target (down previously from $43.00) on shares of Cognex in a research note on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut 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 restated an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. HSBC lowered Cognex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $33.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Cognex to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cognex has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.83.

Cognex Trading Down 2.8 %

The firm has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.25 and a beta of 1.40. The business’s 50-day moving average is $37.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.55.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last posted its 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 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CTO Joerg Kuechen sold 2,934 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.75, for a total transaction of $110,758.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.73, for a total transaction of $222,662.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,445.18. The trade was a 59.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognex

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognex by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,836 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in Cognex by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,616 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $201,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 30.8% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 49,749 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,784,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.