Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) Stake Lowered by AlphaQuest LLC

AlphaQuest LLC reduced its stake in shares of Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) by 35.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,359 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 2,948 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Cognex were worth $192,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings 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 in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Cognex during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cognex during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Cognex during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of CGNX opened at $31.51 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.66 and a beta of 1.43. Cognex Co. has a 52 week low of $30.04 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 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Cognex Co. will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Cognex Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CGNX shares. HSBC cut shares of Cognex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $33.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, February 21st. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of Cognex from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Cognex from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Cognex from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” 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 assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,445.18. This 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. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Cognex 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.