Cognex Corporation

CGNX

Hardware, Equipment & Parts · Technology

Also trades as: 0I14.L

Price

$61.12

-1.78 (-2.84%)

Market Cap

$10.17B

Exchange

NASDAQ

Winston Score

Winston is curious

A decent business — some strong pillars, some weaker.

Data as of Aug 12, 2026 · filings through Jul 5, 2026

Share count falling — buybacks

−5.9% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 179.9M (2021) → 169.4M (2025)

Cognex makes machine vision systems — cameras and software that help factory machines "see." These systems check products for defects, read barcodes, and guide robots on assembly lines. Cognex sells to manufacturers in industries like automotive, electronics, and consumer goods, and it is one of the largest dedicated machine vision companies in the world.

Cognex earns money by selling vision sensors, cameras, and software licenses to factories and logistics companies. It operates globally, with significant revenue coming from Asia, Europe, and North America. The company's moat comes from its deep software expertise and strong brand recognition among factory engineers, making it hard for customers to switch. The main risk is that Cognex's sales are closely tied to factory capital spending, which slows sharply during economic downturns — as seen in recent years when weakness in the consumer electronics and automotive markets weighed heavily on revenue.

Winston Score History

Growth Profile

For growth stock investors

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+16.9% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Steady revenue growth

EPS Growth

+79.2% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

EPS growth accelerating

R&D Spend

$139M/ year

→ Flat (-1% vs prior year)

14.0% of revenue

In line with sector average (15%)

Steady R&D investment year-over-year

Insider Activity

4.6%ownership

→ Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$755M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↑ Burn rate improving

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth + cash flow

Cognex Corporation is a rare growth stock that's already generating positive cash flow while growing at 17%. The Winston Score doesn't fully credit this transition from "burner" to "earner."

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Gross Margin

70.6%

Premium pricing power — 70.6% gross margin

Operating Margin

29.4%

Excellent — 29.4% operating margin

ROCE

5.2%

Weak — 5.2% return on capital

ROIC between 5% and 15%. They earn 5 to 15 cents back per year on every dollar invested.

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Growth

Sales YoY

+17.1%

Fast-growing sales (+17.1% YoY)

EPS YoY

+45.8%

Earnings growing fast (+45.8% YoY)

Earnings growing 25%+ a year. The compounder zone.

EPS Consistency

7/8 quarters

Every recent quarter grew earnings vs last year

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Cash Flow

Cash Conversion

143%

Turns 143% of profit into real cash

FCF Margin

22.1%

Converts sales into free cash efficiently (22.1%)

Free cash flow margin above 20%. Out of every $100 in sales, more than $20 is real cash they keep.

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Stability

Debt / Equity

N/A

Data not available

Interest Cover

100.00x

—

Comfortably covers interest (100.0x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

58.2x

Expensive — P/E 58.2

P/E over 35. The market is pricing in heavy, sustained growth.

P/E vs Forward

+24.0

GROWING

Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (58.2 → 34.2)

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Dividends

Dividend Yield

0.54%

Small dividend — 0.54% yield

Modest yield. The bulk of any return needs to come from price appreciation.

Dividend Growth

+6.3%

Dividend growing modestly (6.3% YoY)

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