Royce & Associates LP Has $4.66 Million Stake in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

Royce & Associates LP lowered its position in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 57.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 105,060 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 142,428 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.29% of Benchmark Electronics worth $4,656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Benchmark Electronics during the 2nd quarter worth about $41,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 81.9% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in Benchmark Electronics by 172.5% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,379 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 125.3% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,534 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 853 shares during the last quarter. 92.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

BHE opened at $46.85 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $44.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a PE ratio of 27.24 and a beta of 0.97. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $24.75 and a 52 week high of $52.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.36.

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

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This is a positive change from Benchmark Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.53%.

Insider Activity at Benchmark Electronics

In other news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.70, for a total transaction of $302,017.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 42,027 shares in the company, valued at $1,794,552.90. The trade was a 14.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.90, for a total value of $1,101,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 424,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,469,540.70. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.