Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Stock Price Down 7.3% – Here’s Why

Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ:CGNX) was down 7.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $62.22 and last traded at $61.51. Approximately 135,200 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 2,125,512 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.35.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CGNX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Truist Financial set a $74.00 target price on Cognex and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Cognex from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Cognex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 13th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $74.00 price objective (up from $72.00) on shares of Cognex in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, HSBC lowered Cognex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, August 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $75.21.

Cognex Stock Down 7.1%

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $62.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.80 and a beta of 1.48.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.03. Cognex had a return on equity of 13.50% and a net margin of 16.05%.The firm had revenue of $291.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $292.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.25 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Cognex has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.640-1.680 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.540 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Cognex Corporation will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th were paid a $0.0850 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $0.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Cognex’s payout ratio is 33.01%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cognex

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CGNX. Congress Asset Management Co. bought a new stake in Cognex during the third quarter valued at about $23,624,000. Eastern Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Cognex by 20.0% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,242 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in shares of Cognex by 5,143.8% in the third quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 57,944 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,514,000 after acquiring an additional 56,839 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Cognex by 16.9% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 9,497 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $576,000 after acquiring an additional 1,376 shares during the period. Finally, Marathon Mission Inc. raised its stake in Cognex by 22.4% during the 3rd quarter. Marathon Mission Inc. now owns 4,613 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 845 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.12% of the company’s stock.

Cognex Company Profile

Cognex Corporation (NASDAQ: CGNX) develops machine vision products and technologies that help businesses automate manufacturing, logistics and other industrial processes. Its systems enable machines to inspect, identify, measure and guide products, components and materials with limited human intervention.

The company’s product portfolio includes industrial vision cameras, vision sensors, image-based barcode readers, three-dimensional vision systems and software for image processing and analysis.