Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Shares Bought by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV grew its stake in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 125.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,534 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 853 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Benchmark Electronics were worth $68,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Benchmark Electronics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $70,424,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Benchmark Electronics by 176.6% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 615,036 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $24,269,000 after buying an additional 392,699 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 85.9% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 446,176 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $17,606,000 after buying an additional 206,114 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 3.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,845,204 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $145,405,000 after acquiring an additional 159,716 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates purchased a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,642,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Benchmark Electronics

In related news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.70, for a total value of $302,017.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 42,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,794,552.90. This trade represents a 14.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Rhonda R. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.98, for a total value of $281,880.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 47,991 shares in the company, valued at $2,254,617.18. This trade represents a 11.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 37,073 shares of company stock valued at $1,685,497. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Benchmark Electronics from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Lake Street Capital increased their target price on Benchmark Electronics from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.33.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

NYSE:BHE opened at $48.17 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.01 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $45.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.61. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.75 and a 12 month high of $52.57. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.03. Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.32%. The firm had revenue of $658.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $650.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.57 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Benchmark Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is presently 39.53%.

About Benchmark Electronics

Benchmark Electronics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, offers product design, engineering services, technology solutions, and manufacturing services in the Americas, Asia, and Europe. The company provides engineering services and technology solutions, including new product design, prototype, testing, and related engineering services; and custom testing and technology solutions, as well as automation equipment design and build services.