Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Price Target Lowered to $26.00 at Citigroup

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) had its price objective reduced by Citigroup from $37.00 to $26.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

CGNX has been the topic of several other research reports. Hsbc Global Res lowered Cognex from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Cognex from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Cognex from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Cognex from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Cognex from $39.00 to $35.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.83.

Cognex Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of CGNX stock opened at $23.55 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $30.67 and a 200-day moving average of $36.12. The company has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.61 and a beta of 1.56. Cognex has a 52 week low of $22.67 and a 52 week high of $53.13.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.01). Cognex had a return on equity of 5.65% and a net margin of 11.61%. Analysts anticipate that Cognex will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.73, for a total value of $222,662.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,445.18. The trade was a 59.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,836 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $281,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in Cognex by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,616 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $201,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Cognex by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 885 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Cognex by 30.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 0.6% during 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 acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.