Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday morning.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on BHE. Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.33.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

NYSE BHE opened at $48.47 on Friday. Benchmark Electronics has a 1 year low of $24.75 and a 1 year high of $52.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a PE ratio of 28.18 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.00.

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

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. 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. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Benchmark Electronics news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 424,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,469,540.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Benchmark Electronics news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 424,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,469,540.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.70, for a total transaction of $302,017.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 42,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,794,552.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Benchmark Electronics

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Benchmark Electronics during the second quarter worth about $41,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 81.9% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 172.5% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,379 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Benchmark Electronics during the second quarter worth about $61,000. Institutional investors own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics Company 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.