Cognex (CGNX) Competitors

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) and MKS (NASDAQ:MKSI) are both mid-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, earnings, media sentiment, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Does the media prefer CGNX or MKSI?

In the previous week, Cognex had 26 more articles in the media than MKS. MarketBeat recorded 42 mentions for Cognex and 16 mentions for MKS. Cognex's average media sentiment score of 0.92 beat MKS's score of 0.63 indicating that Cognex is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Cognex	18 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	13 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
MKS	4 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is CGNX or MKSI a better dividend stock?

Cognex pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. MKS pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Cognex pays out 45.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MKS pays out 26.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Cognex has increased its dividend for 10 consecutive years. MKS is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Do insiders and institutionals have more ownership in CGNX or MKSI?

88.1% of Cognex shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.8% of MKS shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Cognex shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of MKS shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Which has higher earnings and valuation, CGNX or MKSI?

MKS has higher revenue and earnings than Cognex. MKS is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cognex, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cognex	$914.52M	7.43	$106.17M	$0.71	57.00
MKS	$3.65B	1.71	$190M	$3.35	27.69

Which has more volatility and risk, CGNX or MKSI?

Cognex has a beta of 1.47, suggesting that its share price is 47% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MKS has a beta of 1.86, suggesting that its share price is 86% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is CGNX or MKSI more profitable?

Cognex has a net margin of 13.13% compared to MKS's net margin of 6.21%. MKS's return on equity of 20.67% beat Cognex's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cognex	13.13%	6.65%	5.02%
MKS	6.21%	20.67%	5.49%

Do analysts prefer CGNX or MKSI?

Cognex presently has a consensus target price of $42.08, suggesting a potential upside of 3.97%. MKS has a consensus target price of $120.00, suggesting a potential upside of 29.38%. Given MKS's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe MKS is more favorable than Cognex.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cognex	1 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.53
MKS	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	8 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.70

Summary

MKS beats Cognex on 12 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.