Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Trims Stake in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE - Free Report) by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 833,399 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 40,096 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 2.31% of Benchmark Electronics worth $36,936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 81.9% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 172.5% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,379 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 873 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 125.3% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,534 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 853 shares during the last quarter. 92.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Benchmark Electronics

In related news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.90, for a total transaction of $1,101,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 424,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,469,540.70. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Rhonda R. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.98, for a total transaction of $281,880.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 47,991 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,254,617.18. This represents a 11.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Benchmark Electronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $42.33.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Down 1.1 %

Benchmark Electronics stock traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $48.95. The stock had a trading volume of 223,820 shares, compared to its average volume of 239,343. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.46 and a beta of 0.99. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $24.93 and a 12-month high of $52.57. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $45.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.99.

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

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 boost from Benchmark Electronics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Benchmark Electronics's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.53%.

Benchmark Electronics 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.