272 Capital LP Acquires New Holdings in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX)

272 Capital LP bought a new position in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 23,800 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,113,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its position in shares of Cognex by 94.4% in the first quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 589 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,819 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 11.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,829 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $179,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognex by 27.2% during the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,929 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognex by 4.2% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 11,514 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Cognex

In other Cognex news, Director Dianne M. Parrotte acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $38.62 per share, for a total transaction of $77,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,340 shares in the company, valued at $437,950.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Dianne M. Parrotte bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $38.62 per share, with a total value of $77,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,340 shares in the company, valued at approximately $437,950.80. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Dennis Fehr bought 6,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $38.04 per share, for a total transaction of $249,922.80. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $249,922.80. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Cognex from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Vertical Research began coverage on shares of Cognex in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $58.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Cognex from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Cognex from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Cognex from $46.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.62.

Cognex Price Performance

Shares of Cognex stock opened at $39.41 on Tuesday. Cognex Co. has a one year low of $34.28 and a one year high of $53.13. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.95 and a beta of 1.41.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $239.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $240.33 million. Cognex had a net margin of 9.29% and a return on equity of 4.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Cognex Co. will post 0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Cognex’s payout ratio is presently 51.72%.

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.