CTS (NYSE:CTS) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of CTS (NYSE:CTS) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

Separately, Scotiabank downgraded CTS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

CTS Stock Performance

CTS stock opened at $52.16 on Friday. CTS has a 12-month low of $40.92 and a 12-month high of $59.68. The company has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.89 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $53.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.69.

CTS (NYSE:CTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $132.42 million for the quarter. CTS had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 11.66%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that CTS will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CTS Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be issued a $0.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.31%. CTS’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.25%.

Insider Transactions at CTS

In related news, CEO Kieran M. O’sullivan sold 31,978 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.81, for a total value of $1,784,692.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 423,665 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,644,743.65. This represents a 7.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 59,956 shares of company stock valued at $3,331,185 in the last three months. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CTS

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in CTS by 132.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 586 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of CTS in the second quarter worth approximately $41,000. KBC Group NV grew its position in CTS by 58.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,713 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CTS during the third quarter worth $92,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. acquired a new position in CTS in the 2nd quarter worth about $263,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.87% of the company’s stock.

CTS Company Profile

CTS Corporation manufactures and sells sensors, actuators, and connectivity components in North America, Europe, and Asia. The company provides encoders, rotary position sensors, slide potentiometers, industrial and commercial rotary potentiometers. It also provides non-contacting, and contacting pedals; and eBrake pedals.