Natixis Advisors LLC Purchases 2,078 Shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,233 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,078 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.08% of Benchmark Electronics worth $1,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHE. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 686 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Benchmark Electronics during the second quarter worth $41,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings 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 raised 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 period. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 2nd quarter worth about $61,000. 92.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on BHE shares. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Lake Street Capital lifted 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.33.

Insider Transactions at Benchmark Electronics

In related news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of Benchmark Electronics 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 owns 424,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,469,540.70. This trade represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Rhonda R. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.98, for a total value of $281,880.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 47,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,254,617.18. The trade was a 11.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

NYSE BHE opened at $48.28 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $45.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.71. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $24.75 and a 12-month high of $52.57. The company has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.21 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $658.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $650.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.57 earnings per share. Benchmark Electronics’s revenue was down 8.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 is an increase from Benchmark Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is presently 39.53%.

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.