LRT Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX)

LRT Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) by 64.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 84,703 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 33,150 shares during the period. Cognex comprises 2.4% of LRT Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. LRT Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Cognex were worth $3,037,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Cognex during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cognex by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 885 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cognex by 129.9% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Clean Yield Group raised its stake in Cognex by 1,686.7% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Cognex by 50.2% during 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.12% of the company’s stock.

Cognex Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CGNX opened at $29.47 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $4.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.31 and a beta of 1.45. Cognex Co. has a fifty-two week low of $22.67 and a fifty-two week high of $53.13. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $28.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.53.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.14 EPS 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%. Research analysts predict that Cognex Co. will post 0.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Cognex’s payout ratio is presently 47.06%.

Insider Transactions at Cognex

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Cognex from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Cognex from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Cognex from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Cognex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $33.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.17.

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.