Polen Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC)

Polen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 24,182 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,723,000. Polen Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Belden at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Belden during the third quarter worth about $33,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Belden by 97.7% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 423 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in Belden by 31.3% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 835 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in Belden by 9.6% during the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its stake in Belden by 27.8% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,261 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $148,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.75% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Ashish Chand sold 14,535 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.45, for a total transaction of $1,619,925.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,939,527.05. This trade represents a 11.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jonathan C. Klein sold 2,129 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $234,190.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,968 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,096,480. This represents a 17.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,428 shares of company stock valued at $2,589,774. 1.59% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Belden Stock Down 3.5 %

Belden stock traded down $3.77 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $102.76. The company had a trading volume of 562,922 shares, compared to its average volume of 255,779. The stock has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.36 and a beta of 1.02. Belden Inc. has a 1 year low of $80.90 and a 1 year high of $131.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business has a fifty day moving average of $111.98 and a 200 day moving average of $114.77.

Belden (NYSE:BDC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.24. Belden had a net margin of 8.06% and a return on equity of 21.42%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Belden Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Belden Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. Belden's payout ratio is currently 4.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BDC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Belden from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Belden in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Belden from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Belden presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $130.25.

Belden 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.