Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Shares Sold by Royce & Associates LP

Royce & Associates LP decreased its stake in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE - Free Report) by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 105,060 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 142,428 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.29% of Benchmark Electronics worth $4,656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the second quarter valued at about $41,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 81.9% in the second 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 position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 172.5% in the second 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 increased its stake 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 worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 853 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BHE shares. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Benchmark Electronics from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Lake Street Capital upped their price objective on Benchmark Electronics from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com cut Benchmark Electronics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Benchmark Electronics has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.33.

Benchmark Electronics Trading Up 1.0 %

Benchmark Electronics stock traded up $0.47 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $47.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 138,157 shares, compared to its average volume of 307,521. The stock's fifty day moving average is $44.79 and its 200 day moving average is $42.39. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.75 and a 1-year high of $52.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.51 and a beta of 0.97. 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 (NYSE:BHE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.03. Benchmark Electronics had a net margin of 2.32% and a return on equity of 6.81%. The company had revenue of $658.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $650.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.57 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $0.17 dividend. This is a positive change from Benchmark Electronics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Benchmark Electronics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.53%.

Insider Activity at Benchmark Electronics

In other Benchmark Electronics news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.70, for a total transaction of $302,017.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 42,027 shares in the company, valued at $1,794,552.90. The trade was a 14.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the firm'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 directly owns 424,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,469,540.70. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Benchmark Electronics

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.