Royce & Associates LP Sells 68,692 Shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

Royce & Associates LP trimmed its holdings in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 65.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 36,368 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 68,692 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Benchmark Electronics were worth $1,651,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Benchmark Electronics in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 125.3% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,534 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 853 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,547 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in Benchmark Electronics in the 3rd quarter worth about $238,000. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 5,620 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. 92.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Benchmark Electronics

In other news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.82, for a total transaction of $232,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 448,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,398,347.60. This represents a 1.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:BHE opened at $40.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.46. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.64 and a 1-year high of $52.57. The company has a 50-day moving average of $42.26 and a 200 day moving average of $44.38. The firm has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.65 and a beta of 0.97.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last posted 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 net margin of 2.38% and a return on equity of 6.68%.

Benchmark Electronics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BHE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock 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 report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

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.