Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $31.06 and last traded at $31.20, with a volume of 1196639 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $32.17.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Cognex from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group cut their target price on Cognex from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Cognex from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. HSBC cut Cognex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $37.00 target price (down from $43.00) on shares of Cognex in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.83.

Cognex Stock Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average is $36.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of 50.84 and a beta of 1.43.

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

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cognex news, CTO Joerg Kuechen sold 2,934 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.75, for a total value of $110,758.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,445.18. This represents a 59.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Cognex by 123.1% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 714 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Cognex in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cognex by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 885 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cognex during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Cognex by 129.9% during the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,007 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 569 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.12% of the company’s stock.

About Cognex

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.