Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 179,060 Shares of Cognex Corporation $CGNX

Key Points

• Conestoga Capital Advisors bought 179,060 Cognex shares in the third quarter, worth about $10.86 million and equal to a 0.11% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 88.12% of the company.
• Cognex reported quarterly EPS of $0.53, above the $0.52 consensus, while revenue grew 13% year over year to $313.39 million—slightly below estimates. The company also raised its 2026 guidance after a record quarter.
• Cognex raised its quarterly dividend 5.9%, from $0.085 to $0.09 per share. The stock was reported down 8.7%, and analysts’ average rating was “Moderate Buy,” with a $75.57 consensus price target.

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 179,060 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $10,860,000. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC owned 0.11% of Cognex at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Cognex in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,158,123,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in Cognex in the second quarter valued at approximately $161,425,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Cognex during the second quarter valued at approximately $129,348,000. Front Street Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Cognex during the second quarter valued at approximately $90,581,000. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new stake in shares of Cognex during the second quarter valued at approximately $90,605,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on CGNX. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $74.00 target price (up from $72.00) on shares of Cognex in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Cognex from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Cognex from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. DA Davidson reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Cognex and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.57.

Key Headlines Impacting Cognex

Here are the key news stories impacting Cognex this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 adjusted EPS was $0.53, above estimates of about $0.51–$0.52 and up from $0.33 a year earlier. Revenue increased 13% year over year to $313.39 million, and the company raised its 2026 guidance after a record quarter. Cognex Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results Cognex Fiscal Q3 Adjusted Earnings, Revenue Increase; 2026 Guidance Raised
• Positive Sentiment: Cognex raised its quarterly dividend 5.9%, from $0.085 to $0.09 per share, equivalent to $0.36 annually and a 0.7% yield. Cognex dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: One valuation article argued CGNX could be 33% undervalued; this is an opinion rather than a company announcement or guaranteed catalyst. Cognex Could Be 33% Undervalued Following Record Q3 and Raised Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue came in just below consensus ($313.39 million versus $313.62 million). Although EPS beat estimates, the small revenue miss and reports of a post-results stock decline suggest investors may have expected a stronger surprise. Cognex Q3 2026 Results and Stock Reaction

Cognex Trading Down 8.7%

CGNX stock opened at $53.06 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $8.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.52 and a beta of 1.49. Cognex Corporation has a 12-month low of $34.60 and a 12-month high of $72.88. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $59.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.96.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. Cognex had a net margin of 16.05% and a return on equity of 13.50%. The firm had revenue of $313.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $313.62 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.33 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Cognex Corporation will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This is an increase from Cognex's previous quarterly dividend of $0.0850. Cognex's payout ratio is 33.01%.

About Cognex

Cognex Corporation develops machine vision and industrial identification technologies that help manufacturers and businesses automate inspection, measurement, guidance, and tracking processes. Its systems use cameras, sensors, software, and artificial intelligence to analyze images and identify products, defects, components, and other objects.

The company's product portfolio includes vision systems, industrial cameras, vision sensors, barcode readers, optical character recognition tools, three-dimensional vision systems, and machine vision software.

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