Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Short Interest Update

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) saw a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,464,894 shares, a growth of 25.3% from the February 26th total of 1,169,060 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 323,006 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.5 days. Currently, 4.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on BHE shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Benchmark Electronics in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Lake Street Capital set a $62.00 price target on Benchmark Electronics in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Benchmark Electronics from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.00.

Insider Transactions at Benchmark Electronics

In other Benchmark Electronics news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 25,000 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.19, for a total transaction of $1,454,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 398,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,170,094.20. The trade was a 5.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 40,934 shares of company stock worth $2,264,419. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Benchmark Electronics

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,906,748 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $124,293,000 after acquiring an additional 218,450 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 39.0% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,790,647 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $69,531,000 after acquiring an additional 502,717 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $74,940,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,389,766 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $59,661,000 after purchasing an additional 9,724 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 2.3% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,328,183 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $51,201,000 after purchasing an additional 29,923 shares during the period. 92.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

NYSE:BHE traded up $2.52 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $56.05. The stock had a trading volume of 370,956 shares, compared to its average volume of 413,852. Benchmark Electronics has a twelve month low of $30.73 and a twelve month high of $61.12. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.23 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 2.28.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The technology company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.07. Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 6.48% and a net margin of 0.93%.The business had revenue of $704.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $696.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Benchmark Electronics has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.530-0.590 EPS.

Benchmark Electronics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.55%.

Benchmark Electronics Company Profile

Benchmark Electronics, Inc is a global provider of comprehensive electronics manufacturing services (EMS) and integrated engineering solutions. The company offers a full suite of services that span the entire product lifecycle, from early‐stage design and prototyping to high‐volume production and aftermarket support. Benchmark serves diverse end markets, including industrial automation, medical devices, communications, aerospace and defense, and semiconductor equipment.

At the core of Benchmark’s offering are printed circuit board assemblies (PCBA), system integration, box build assemblies and turnkey manufacturing.