Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. Acquires New Position in Cognex Corporation $CGNX

Key Points

• Hillsdale Investment Management opened a new position in Cognex Corporation during the first quarter, buying 65,200 shares worth about $3.19 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased their stakes, and institutional ownership now stands at 88.12% of Cognex shares, showing heavy interest from large investors.
• Cognex reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.34 and revenue of $268.44 million, and analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $72.31.

Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 65,200 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $3,194,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Cognex by 173,138.2% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 10,477,448 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $376,979,000 after acquiring an additional 10,471,400 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Cognex by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 8,101,583 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $292,224,000 after purchasing an additional 76,212 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in Cognex by 27.9% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 7,013,184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $252,360,000 after purchasing an additional 1,529,010 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Cognex by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,314,896 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $191,231,000 after purchasing an additional 1,258,629 shares during the period. Finally, Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN boosted its holdings in Cognex by 0.9% in the second quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 4,768,716 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $151,264,000 after purchasing an additional 40,927 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.12% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Mark Fennell sold 64,873 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider owned 11,263 shares in the company, valued at $755,184.15. This represents a 85.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Darren Marc Long sold 20,252 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.34, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 83.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 224,847 shares of company stock valued at $14,975,098 over the last 90 days. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CGNX shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Cognex in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Cognex from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Cognex from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. UBS Group set a $75.00 target price on shares of Cognex in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 target price (up from $70.00) on shares of Cognex in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $72.31.

Cognex Price Performance

CGNX opened at $63.24 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $65.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.15. The stock has a market cap of $10.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.29 and a beta of 1.49. Cognex Corporation has a 12 month low of $32.55 and a 12 month high of $72.88.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.09. Cognex had a return on equity of 10.89% and a net margin of 13.62%.The company had revenue of $268.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $245.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.14 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. Cognex has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.440 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Cognex Corporation will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

Cognex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Cognex's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.48%.

Cognex 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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