Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Given New $71.00 Price Target at Truist Financial

Key Points

• Truist Financial raised its price target on Cognex from $61 to $71 while keeping a hold rating, and that target is roughly in line with the stock’s recent trading price.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive on Cognex: the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average price target of $71.14, and several firms recently set targets around $72 to $75.
• Cognex reported strong quarterly results, beating earnings and revenue estimates with EPS of $0.34 and revenue of $268.44 million, while revenue rose 24.3% year over year.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by analysts at Truist Financial from $61.00 to $71.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "hold" rating on the scientific and technical instruments company's stock. Truist Financial's price target points to a potential downside of 0.43% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Cognex from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Seaport Research Partners set a $75.00 price objective on Cognex in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. UBS Group set a $75.00 target price on Cognex in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Cognex in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $72.00 price target on shares of Cognex in a report on Friday, May 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.14.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CGNX opened at $71.31 on Thursday. Cognex has a 52 week low of $31.77 and a 52 week high of $72.88. The firm has a market cap of $11.87 billion, a PE ratio of 84.89 and a beta of 1.49. The firm's fifty day moving average is $63.24 and its 200-day moving average is $52.07.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $268.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $245.98 million. Cognex had a return on equity of 10.89% and a net margin of 13.62%.Cognex's quarterly revenue was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.14 earnings per share. Cognex has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.440 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cognex will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Cognex news, insider Mark Fennell sold 64,873 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was 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 owned 11,263 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $755,184.15. This trade represents a 85.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laura Ann Macdonald sold 41,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total value of $2,727,296.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 5,258 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $344,714.48. This represents a 88.78% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 224,847 shares of company stock worth $14,975,098 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognex

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Cognex by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 200,351 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $5,976,000 after purchasing an additional 23,326 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cognex during the first quarter valued at about $291,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cognex by 24.1% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 47,444 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,415,000 after buying an additional 9,223 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Cognex by 402.2% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 919 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Cognex by 7.5% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 13,208 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $419,000 after acquiring an additional 920 shares in the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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