Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Upgraded by Barclays to Strong-Buy Rating

Key Points

• Cognex's stock was upgraded to a strong-buy rating by Barclays, indicating a positive outlook for the company's performance.
• The stock currently has a consensus price target of $44.93, with various ratings from analysts including two strong buys and seven buys.
• Cognex reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.25, exceeding expectations, and its revenue increased by 4.2% year-over-year, demonstrating steady growth.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Barclays to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on CGNX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Cognex in a research report on Monday, September 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Cognex from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Cognex in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial set a $45.00 target price on Cognex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Melius upgraded Cognex from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.93.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of Cognex stock traded down $0.54 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $46.22. 102,232 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,055,766. The stock's fifty day moving average is $44.08 and its 200 day moving average is $34.73. The stock has a market cap of $7.76 billion, a PE ratio of 65.09 and a beta of 1.50. Cognex has a 12 month low of $22.67 and a 12 month high of $47.52.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.02. Cognex had a net margin of 13.13% and a return on equity of 6.65%. The company had revenue of $249.09 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $246.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.23 EPS. Cognex's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Cognex has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 0.240-0.290 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Cognex will post 0.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Sheila Marie Dipalma sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.03, for a total value of $90,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $296,387.46. This represents a 23.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cognex

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. bought a new position in Cognex in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Cognex during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted 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 valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 736 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognex by 439.4% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 971 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 791 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cognex by 155.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,062 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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