New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 2,300 Shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

New York State Teachers Retirement System cut its holdings in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,469 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 2,300 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.20% of Benchmark Electronics worth $3,199,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Benchmark Electronics by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 193,183 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,771,000 after acquiring an additional 19,289 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 37,972 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 10,870 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 337 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 41,736 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after purchasing an additional 4,665 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 40.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,151 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the period. 92.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Benchmark Electronics news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.31, for a total value of $271,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 418,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,947,418.63. This trade represents a 1.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BHE opened at $41.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.76 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $44.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.70. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.44 and a 52-week high of $52.57.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.31%.

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.