Key Points
- Director Robert Willett sold 177,052 shares on Feb. 12 at an average price of $58.39 for a total of $10,338,066.28, according to an SEC filing.
- Q4 results beat expectations — Cognex reported $0.27 EPS vs. $0.22 expected and $252.3M revenue (≈+9.9% YoY) and raised Q1 guidance, prompting analyst upgrades and higher price targets.
- The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.085 (annualized $0.34, yield ~0.6%) and has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $50.73 price target, but large insider sales and emerging AI regulation risk may temper sentiment.
Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) VP Laura Ann Macdonald sold 14,881 shares of Cognex stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.16, for a total value of $850,597.96. Following the sale, the vice president owned 2,212 shares in the company, valued at $126,437.92. This represents a 87.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.
Cognex Trading Up 0.2%
CGNX opened at $58.79 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 87.75 and a beta of 1.53. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.48. Cognex Corporation has a 12-month low of $22.67 and a 12-month high of $59.88.
Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $252.34 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $238.92 million. Cognex had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 9.02%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.16 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Cognex Corporation will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.
Cognex Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.085 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $0.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Cognex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.13%.
Trending Headlines about Cognex
Here are the key news stories impacting Cognex this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat and revenue growth — Cognex reported $0.27 EPS vs. $0.22 expected and revenue of $252.3M (up ~10% YoY); the stronger-than-expected results and margin improvement were the primary upward catalyst. Earnings Beat
- Positive Sentiment: Raised Q1 guidance — management gave Q1 EPS and revenue guidance above Street estimates (EPS guide 0.220–0.260 vs. consensus ~0.200), supporting the outlook for continued recovery. Guidance & Call
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade / price target lift — Needham raised its target from $47 to $67 and kept a Buy rating, reinforcing the bullish narrative and adding buy-side momentum. Analyst Raise
- Positive Sentiment: Dividend and shareholder-friendly actions mentioned on the call — Cognex declared a quarterly dividend and discussed portfolio optimization and buyback/dividend moves that support shareholder returns. Dividend & Call Highlights
- Neutral Sentiment: Positive press and commentary — multiple outlets (Seeking Alpha, Motley Fool, Benzinga) published bullish takes on the turnaround and long-term returns; useful for sentiment but reiterative. Feature Article
- Neutral Sentiment: Short interest reporting shows no meaningful short positions in the available data (entries report zero/NaN), so short-squeeze pressure appears unlikely based on current figures.
- Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales — Director Robert Willett sold ~177k shares (~$10.3M) and VP Laura Macdonald sold ~14.9k shares (~$850k). Big insider dispositions can temper sentiment even after strong results. Insider Filings
- Negative Sentiment: Emerging AI regulation risk — Cognex added a regulatory risk disclosure related to rising AI rules that could increase compliance costs and pressure margins over time. AI Regulation Risk
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CGNX. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 22,907 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $824,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Cognex by 12.9% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,132 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Cognex by 1.8% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 14,611 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $662,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Cognex by 10.6% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,788 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in Cognex by 0.6% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 49,651 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $2,249,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.12% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several analysts recently weighed in on CGNX shares. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cognex in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $35.00 target price (down from $45.00) on shares of Cognex in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Cognex from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $42.00 to $50.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. DA Davidson set a $38.00 price target on Cognex and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Cognex from $47.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.73.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on CGNX
Cognex Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
Cognex Corporation is a leading provider of machine vision systems, software, sensors and industrial barcode readers used to automate manufacturing, logistics and distribution processes. The company designs and develops vision-based products that help manufacturers and logistics operators inspect, identify and guide parts, assemblies and packaged goods in real time. Its solutions are applied in a broad range of industries, including automotive, electronics, semiconductor, pharmaceutical, food and beverage, and general manufacturing.
The company's product portfolio includes stand-alone vision systems, vision sensors and deep learning-based software platforms that enable automated inspection, quality control and traceability.
See Also
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from InsiderTrades.com in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
