StockNews.com Upgrades Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) to “Buy”

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Separately, Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.33.

Benchmark Electronics Trading Up 2.5 %

Benchmark Electronics stock opened at $46.34 on Tuesday. 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 has a 12 month low of $25.35 and a 12 month high of $52.57. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.52. The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.94 and a beta of 0.99.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $650.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Benchmark Electronics news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 24,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 424,173 shares in the company, valued at $19,469,540.70. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Rhonda R. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 47,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,254,617.18. This represents a 11.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BHE. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Benchmark Electronics by 65.7% during the second 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 shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 2nd quarter worth about $41,000. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 172.5% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,379 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 873 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake 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 valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 853 shares during the period. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Benchmark Electronics during the second quarter worth about $61,000. 92.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Benchmark Electronics Company 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.