B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Acquires Shares of 21,321 Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 21,321 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $945,000.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Benchmark Electronics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 81.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 172.5% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,379 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

BHE stock opened at $48.17 on Friday. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.75 and a 1 year high of $52.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $45.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.61. The firm has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.01 and a beta of 0.97.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.03. Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.32%. The firm had revenue of $658.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $650.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.57 EPS. Benchmark Electronics’s revenue was down 8.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Benchmark Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BHE has been the topic of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Benchmark Electronics from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com cut Benchmark Electronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Lake Street Capital upped their price target on Benchmark Electronics from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Benchmark Electronics news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.70, for a total transaction of $302,017.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 42,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,794,552.90. This represents a 14.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.90, for a total value 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 $19,469,540.70. This trade represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 37,073 shares of company stock valued at $1,685,497 in the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.