Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes Position in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 55,957 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $6,301,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.14% of Belden as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDC. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Belden in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Belden by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 634 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Belden by 31.3% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 835 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Belden by 9.6% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Matrix Trust Co raised its holdings in Belden by 624.8% during the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 1,522 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $171,000 after buying an additional 1,312 shares in the last quarter. 98.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Belden Stock Performance

NYSE BDC traded up $0.78 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $103.03. The company had a trading volume of 71,509 shares, compared to its average volume of 273,172. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $100.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $112.09. Belden Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $81.02 and a fifty-two week 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 stock has a market cap of $4.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Belden Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.19%. Belden's payout ratio is currently 4.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Belden news, SVP Leah Tate sold 2,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.77, for a total value of $275,448.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,243 shares in the company, valued at $2,667,599.11. The trade was a 9.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ashish Chand sold 14,535 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,939,527.05. The trade was a 11.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,428 shares of company stock worth $2,589,774 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BDC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Belden from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Belden from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of Belden from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Belden from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $126.20.

About Belden

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.