Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. reduced its stake in shares of Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX) by 46.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,152 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 31,669 shares during the period. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A.’s holdings in Cognex Corporation were worth $3,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Segantii Capital Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Cognex Corporation during the first quarter valued at approximately $101,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cognex Corporation during the second quarter valued at approximately $102,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Cognex Corporation by 172.3% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,307 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 827 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Cognex Corporation by 69.9% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,580 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cognex Corporation during the second quarter valued at approximately $135,000. 87.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Shares of Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ CGNX) traded up 0.26% during trading on Friday, reaching $101.53. 450,397 shares of the company were exchanged. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $95.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.67. Cognex Corporation has a one year low of $47.25 and a one year high of $110.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.79 billion, a PE ratio of 46.38 and a beta of 1.43.
Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $172.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.79 million. Cognex Corporation had a net margin of 33.10% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. Analysts forecast that Cognex Corporation will post $2.56 EPS for the current year.
Cognex Corporation declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the scientific and technical instruments company to buy up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.085 per share. This represents a $0.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 16th. Cognex Corporation’s payout ratio is presently 15.60%.
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CGNX has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Cognex Corporation from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $101.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 3rd. Cowen and Company reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Cognex Corporation in a research note on Tuesday, July 11th. BidaskClub downgraded shares of Cognex Corporation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 30th. Canaccord Genuity reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $80.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Cognex Corporation in a research note on Wednesday, May 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Cognex Corporation from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $82.75.
In other news, Director Jerry A. Schneider sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.67, for a total value of $513,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $616,020. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Theodor Krantz sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.09, for a total transaction of $720,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 26,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,522,362.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 114,009 shares of company stock worth $11,811,786. Insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.
About Cognex Corporation
Cognex Corporation (Cognex) is a provider of machine vision products that capture and analyze visual information in order to automate tasks, primarily in manufacturing processes, where vision is required. The Company operates through the machine vision technology segment. The Company’s machine vision products are used to automate the manufacture and tracking of discrete items, such as mobile phones, aspirin bottles and automobile tires, by locating, identifying, inspecting and measuring them during the manufacturing or distribution process.
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