State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 2,444 Shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its position in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 44,361 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 2,444 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D owned approximately 0.12% of Benchmark Electronics worth $2,014,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 54.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 14.0% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 55,925 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,479,000 after buying an additional 6,880 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 6.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 71,251 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,158,000 after buying an additional 4,291 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Benchmark Electronics by 4.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 52,225 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 2,248 shares during the period. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 3rd quarter worth $234,000. 92.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on BHE. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BHE opened at $41.10 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.46. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.44 and a 1 year high of $52.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $44.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.77. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a PE ratio of 23.76 and a beta of 0.99.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued 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 return on equity of 6.68% and a net margin of 2.38%.

Benchmark Electronics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 418,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,947,418.63. The trade was a 1.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.