Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) Shares Acquired by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings in Cognex Co. (NASDAQ:CGNX) by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,386,973 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 77,146 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.81% of Cognex worth $56,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CGNX. Thomas Story & Son LLC raised its stake in shares of Cognex by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. Thomas Story & Son LLC now owns 143,927 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $5,829,000 after buying an additional 19,915 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd grew its holdings in Cognex by 12.9% during the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 90,122 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,650,000 after acquiring an additional 10,284 shares during the period. JB Capital LLC raised its position in Cognex by 7.9% during the third quarter. JB Capital LLC now owns 31,844 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,290,000 after acquiring an additional 2,323 shares in the last quarter. Olympiad Research LP acquired a new position in Cognex in the third quarter valued at approximately $632,000. Finally, AlphaCentric Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Cognex in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $608,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Cognex

In related news, CFO Dennis Fehr purchased 6,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $38.04 per share, with a total value of $249,922.80. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 6,570 shares in the company, valued at $249,922.80. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CGNX shares. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Cognex from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Cognex from $45.00 to $39.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Vertical Research began coverage on Cognex in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $58.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Cognex from $46.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Stephens raised Cognex from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $55.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cognex currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.91.

Cognex Stock Performance

Shares of CGNX opened at $39.61 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $39.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.05. Cognex Co. has a one year low of $34.79 and a one year high of $53.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.17 and a beta of 1.40.

Cognex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. This is a boost from Cognex’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. Cognex’s dividend payout ratio is 57.69%.

Cognex Profile

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.