American Century Companies Inc. Acquires 392,699 Shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 176.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 615,036 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 392,699 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 1.71% of Benchmark Electronics worth $24,269,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Benchmark Electronics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Benchmark Electronics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 81.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Benchmark Electronics by 97.9% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

BHE opened at $43.56 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $41.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.75. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.66 and a 52-week high of $48.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.35.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.06. Benchmark Electronics had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 7.17%. The business had revenue of $666.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $635.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.48 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Benchmark Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BHE shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Lake Street Capital upped their price objective on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Benchmark Electronics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Benchmark Electronics

In other news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the director now owns 42,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,794,552.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics Profile

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.