KBC Group NV Trims Stock Position in Cognex Corporation $CGNX

Key Points

• KBC Group NV cut its Cognex stake by 32.2% in the first quarter, leaving it with 67,409 shares valued at about $3.3 million.
• Several analysts turned more bullish on Cognex, with multiple firms raising price targets to $72-$75; the stock currently carries a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target of $72.31.
• Cognex reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, including $0.34 EPS and $268.4 million in revenue, while also noting insider selling and a recent quarterly dividend of $0.085 per share.

KBC Group NV trimmed its holdings in Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) by 32.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,409 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 32,000 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Cognex were worth $3,302,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CGNX. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cognex by 402.2% during the 1st 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 during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Cognex by 74.8% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 764 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Cognex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Cognex by 202.7% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Cognex during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on CGNX. Zacks Research raised shares of Cognex from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Robert W. Baird set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a research note on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group set a $75.00 price objective on Cognex in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $75.00 target price (up from $64.00) on shares of Cognex in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded 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 report on Tuesday, May 26th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.31.

Cognex Stock Down 2.2%

CGNX opened at $62.05 on Friday. Cognex Corporation has a 52-week low of $33.45 and a 52-week high of $72.88. The company has a 50 day moving average of $64.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.34. The company has a market cap of $10.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.87 and a beta of 1.49.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $245.98 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.14 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Cognex has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.440 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Cognex Corporation will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current 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. This represents a $0.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. Cognex's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.48%.

Insider Activity at Cognex

In other news, VP Laura Ann Macdonald sold 41,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total value of $2,727,296.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 5,258 shares of the company's stock, valued at $344,714.48. This represents a 88.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Darren Marc Long sold 20,252 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 3,990 shares of the company's stock, valued at $264,696.60. The trade was a 83.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 224,847 shares of company stock worth $14,975,098. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

About Cognex

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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