Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Short Interest Up 19.7% in November

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,110,000 shares, a growth of 19.7% from the October 31st total of 927,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 251,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days. Approximately 3.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BHE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Benchmark Electronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on 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 given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 stock was 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 approximately $19,469,540.70. This trade represents a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Rhonda R. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.98, for a total value of $281,880.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 47,991 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,254,617.18. This trade represents a 11.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BHE. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 0.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,897,568 shares of the technology company's stock worth $84,081,000 after buying an additional 11,738 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 841,602 shares of the technology company's stock worth $37,307,000 after acquiring an additional 21,355 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 50.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 15,054 shares of the technology company's stock worth $667,000 after acquiring an additional 5,054 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 128.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 86,024 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,814,000 after purchasing an additional 48,425 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 193,205 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $8,555,000 after purchasing an additional 17,697 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.29% of the company's stock.

Benchmark Electronics Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:BHE traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $48.49. 97,217 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 252,310. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.36. Benchmark Electronics has a twelve month low of $24.75 and a twelve month high of $52.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.19 and a beta of 0.97. The business's fifty day moving average price is $45.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.91.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $658.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $650.00 million. Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.32%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.57 EPS.

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 dividend of $0.17 per share. This is a positive change from Benchmark Electronics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. Benchmark Electronics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.53%.

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.