Jump Financial LLC Makes New $1.46 Million Investment in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX)

Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 40,712 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $1,460,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Cognex in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 885 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Cognex by 129.9% in the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,007 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group increased its position in Cognex by 1,686.7% during the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 1,072 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cognex by 50.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,047 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cognex Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:CGNX traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $26.18. 357,871 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,481,717. The firm has a market cap of $4.43 billion, a PE ratio of 42.91 and a beta of 1.56. Cognex Co. has a twelve month low of $22.67 and a twelve month high of $53.13. The stock's 50-day moving average is $29.22 and its 200-day moving average is $35.49.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.01). Cognex had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 5.65%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cognex Co. will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. Cognex's payout ratio is 52.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CGNX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. HSBC downgraded shares of Cognex from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $33.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on Cognex from $47.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Cognex from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Cognex from $37.00 to $29.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Cognex from $37.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cognex

In other Cognex news, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,803 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.73, for a total value of $222,662.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,445.18. This represents a 59.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Cognex Company Profile

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.