Empowered Funds LLC Buys 5,628 Shares of Methode Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:MEI)

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Methode Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:MEI) by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 111,804 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,628 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.32% of Methode Electronics worth $1,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MEI. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Methode Electronics by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 26,910 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Methode Electronics by 6.0% in the second quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 22,474 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Methode Electronics by 17.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 12,062 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 1,758 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Methode Electronics by 1,600.0% during the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 3,200 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Methode Electronics by 749.7% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,693 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 5,023 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.49% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Methode Electronics news, Director David P. Blom bought 9,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $10.81 per share, for a total transaction of $100,749.20. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 37,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $405,710.11. The trade was a 33.04 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary A. Lindsey purchased 8,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $11.38 per share, with a total value of $100,144.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $295,538.60. The trade was a 51.25 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Methode Electronics from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 6th. StockNews.com raised Methode Electronics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th.

Methode Electronics Trading Up 7.6 %

Shares of MEI stock opened at $9.72 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $10.38 and a 200-day moving average of $10.83. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $342.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.41 and a beta of 0.76. Methode Electronics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.54 and a 1-year high of $25.34.

Methode Electronics (NYSE:MEI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The electronics maker reported ($0.31) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.28) by ($0.03). Methode Electronics had a negative net margin of 13.15% and a negative return on equity of 3.50%. The firm had revenue of $258.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $267.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.06 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Methode Electronics, Inc. will post -0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Methode Electronics Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Methode Electronics’s payout ratio is -13.90%.

Methode Electronics Profile

Methode Electronics, Inc designs, engineers, and produces mechatronic products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Automotive, Industrial, Interface, and Medical. The Automotive segment supplies electronic and electro-mechanical devices, and related products to automobile original equipment manufacturers directly or through their tiered suppliers.