Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

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

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Benchmark Electronics from $31.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Fox Advisors downgraded Benchmark Electronics from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Sidoti cut Benchmark Electronics from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $33.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, April 29th.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BHE opened at $39.85 on Thursday. Benchmark Electronics has a 52-week low of $22.66 and a 52-week high of $44.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.78 and a beta of 1.03. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.44.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The technology company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.05. Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 7.20% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business had revenue of $675.58 million for the quarter.

Benchmark Electronics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 12th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.165 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is 36.07%.

Insider Activity at Benchmark Electronics

In related news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 10,000 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.49, for a total transaction of $394,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 45,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,779,498.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Benchmark Electronics news, CFO Arvind Kamal sold 783 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.38, for a total value of $30,051.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 20,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $795,809.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.49, for a total value of $394,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 45,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,779,498.38. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 17,560 shares of company stock valued at $688,374. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Benchmark Electronics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BHE. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 97.9% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 121.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,766 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 967 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the first quarter worth about $111,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the first quarter worth about $136,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.