Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) PT Raised to $55.00 at Sanford C. Bernstein

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $52.00 to $55.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the scientific and technical instruments company's stock. Sanford C. Bernstein's target price would indicate a potential upside of 25.60% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on CGNX. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cognex from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, February 19th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Cognex from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $42.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Cognex from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Cognex from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Cognex from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $48.58.

Cognex Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Cognex stock traded up $0.43 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $43.79. 1,411,680 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,470,606. Cognex has a twelve month low of $34.28 and a twelve month high of $59.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.35 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.89.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $196.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $189.16 million. Cognex had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 6.86%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Cognex will post 0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Carl Gerst sold 6,782 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.54, for a total transaction of $274,942.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cognex

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in shares of Cognex by 94.4% in the first quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 589 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Cognex in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its holdings in Cognex by 303.1% during the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 770 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Cognex by 1,239.7% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 777 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 719 shares during the period. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its position in Cognex by 71.1% in the third quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 804 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by 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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