Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) Stock Price Target Lowered at KeyCorp

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) had its price objective trimmed by KeyCorp from $80.00 to $65.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial set a $74.00 target price on shares of Cognex and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on Cognex from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Cognex from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Cognex from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Cognex in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.93.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CGNX traded up $0.29 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $47.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,785,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,779,685. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.04. The company has a market cap of $8.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.41 and a beta of 1.49. Cognex has a 12-month low of $34.60 and a 12-month high of $72.88.

Cognex (NASDAQ:CGNX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. Cognex had a net margin of 16.05% and a return on equity of 13.50%. The firm had revenue of $313.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $313.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.33 earnings per share. Cognex’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cognex will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cognex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.09 dividend. This is a boost from Cognex’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.0850. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Cognex’s payout ratio is currently 23.78%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CGNX. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Cognex in the second quarter valued at $1,158,123,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cognex during the 2nd quarter worth about $161,425,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Cognex in the 2nd quarter valued at about $129,348,000. Front Street Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Cognex in the 2nd quarter valued at about $90,581,000. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new position in Cognex in the second quarter valued at about $90,605,000. 88.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cognex News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Cognex this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Cognex reported record Q3 results, with earnings of $0.53 per share beating estimates and revenue growing year over year. Management raised its 2026 revenue outlook to $1.14 billion–$1.16 billion and cited margin expansion and stronger logistics demand. Q3 earnings call outlook and margin expansion
• Positive Sentiment: The planned RealSense acquisition could add growth opportunities, while management is targeting further margin expansion. Cognex reports record third-quarter results and RealSense acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its quarterly dividend by 5.9% to $0.09 per share, a modest signal of confidence in cash generation.
• Negative Sentiment: Several firms cut their price targets: Stephens lowered its target to $70, KeyCorp to $65, Needham to $70, and Truist to $57. The cuts may temper enthusiasm despite the improved outlook; ratings remain mostly overweight or buy, while Truist is at hold. Stephens price-target change

About Cognex

Cognex Corporation develops machine vision and industrial identification technologies that help manufacturers and businesses automate inspection, measurement, guidance, and tracking processes. Its systems use cameras, sensors, software, and artificial intelligence to analyze images and identify products, defects, components, and other objects.

The company’s product portfolio includes vision systems, industrial cameras, vision sensors, barcode readers, optical character recognition tools, three-dimensional vision systems, and machine vision software.