Belden (NYSE:BDC) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com lowered shares of Belden (NYSE:BDC) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

BDC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Belden in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Belden from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $130.25.

Belden Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BDC opened at $88.99 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a PE ratio of 18.50 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $107.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $114.65. Belden has a 1-year low of $80.90 and a 1-year high of $131.82.

Belden (NYSE:BDC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.24. Belden had a net margin of 8.06% and a return on equity of 21.42%. As a group, analysts forecast that Belden will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Belden Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Belden’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jonathan C. Klein sold 2,129 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $234,190.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,968 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,096,480. This trade represents a 17.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregory James Mccray sold 4,200 shares of Belden stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.21, for a total transaction of $441,882.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $441,776.79. This represents a 50.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,428 shares of company stock valued at $2,589,774 over the last ninety days. 1.59% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Belden

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Belden by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $135,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Belden by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Belden by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,843 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,334,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Belden by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,802 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Belden by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 2,190 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $247,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. 98.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Belden Company Profile

Belden Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of signal transmission solutions for mission critical applications in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates in two segments, Enterprise Solutions and Industrial Automation Solutions. The Enterprise Solutions segment offers copper cable and connectivity solutions, fiber cable and connectivity solutions, interconnect panels, racks and enclosures, and signal extension and matrix switching systems for use in applications, such as local area networks, data centers, access control, 5G, fiber to the home, and building automation.