Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Shares Sold by Wells Fargo & Company MN

Wells Fargo & Company MN trimmed its holdings in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,872 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 2,053 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.22% of Benchmark Electronics worth $3,535,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,547 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP increased its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 6,162 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 5,620 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 40.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,151 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 71,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,223,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. 92.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.82, for a total value of $232,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 448,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,398,347.60. This represents a 1.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Up 2.7 %

NYSE:BHE opened at $35.70 on Wednesday. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $29.52 and a 52 week high of $52.57. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $38.23 and a 200-day moving average of $43.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.63 and a beta of 0.83.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 6.68% and a net margin of 2.38%.

Benchmark Electronics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.31%.

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.