Hsbc Holdings PLC Buys 39,937 Shares of Cognex Corporation $CGNX

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX) by 210.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 58,932 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 39,937 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Cognex were worth $2,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Cognex by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 22,907 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognex by 12.9% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,132 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its stake in shares of Cognex by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 54,349 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,462,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cognex by 74.8% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 764 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognex by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 23,006 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $828,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price (up from $64.00) on shares of Cognex in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Seaport Research Partners set a $75.00 price target on shares of Cognex in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Zacks Research raised shares of Cognex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective (up from $70.00) on shares of Cognex in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Cognex from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cognex news, VP Darren Marc Long sold 20,252 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.34, for a total value of $1,343,517.68. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,696.60. This trade represents a 83.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Mark Fennell sold 64,873 shares of Cognex stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.05, for a total value of $4,349,734.65. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,263 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $755,184.15. This trade represents a 85.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 224,847 shares of company stock worth $14,975,098 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Cognex Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:CGNX opened at $68.36 on Tuesday. Cognex Corporation has a 12 month low of $31.42 and a 12 month high of $71.90. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $62.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.58. The firm has a market cap of $11.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 81.38 and a beta of 1.52.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.09. Cognex had a net margin of 13.62% and a return on equity of 10.89%. The company had revenue of $268.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $245.98 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. Cognex has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.440 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cognex Corporation will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st were issued a $0.085 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $0.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.48%.

Cognex Company Profile

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.