Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 997,400 shares, a growth of 6.8% from the August 31st total of 933,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 282,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Approximately 2.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Belden Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of BDC traded up $1.26 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $117.13. 271,348 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 274,270. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.92 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.25. Belden has a fifty-two week low of $60.54 and a fifty-two week high of $118.26. The business has a 50-day moving average of $102.40 and a 200-day moving average of $95.32.

Belden (NYSE:BDC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.14. Belden had a return on equity of 21.13% and a net margin of 8.51%. The firm had revenue of $604.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $574.32 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.91 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Belden will post 6.04 EPS for the current year.

Belden Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 12th will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 12th. Belden’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 3.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Belden from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Vertical Research initiated coverage on shares of Belden in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Belden from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Benchmark lifted their target price on Belden from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Belden has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.00.

Insider Activity at Belden

In other Belden news, SVP Brian Edward Anderson sold 6,556 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.46, for a total transaction of $658,615.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 32,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,298,001.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Nancy E. Calderon sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.98, for a total transaction of $239,950.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,954 shares in the company, valued at approximately $667,444.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Brian Edward Anderson sold 6,556 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.46, for a total value of $658,615.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 32,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,298,001.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,137 shares of company stock valued at $1,095,457 over the last ninety days. 1.59% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Belden

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Belden in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Belden during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Belden by 662.2% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Belden by 33,500.0% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,008 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares during the period. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Belden during the 2nd quarter valued at $95,000. Institutional investors own 98.75% of the company’s stock.

About Belden

Belden Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of signal transmission solutions for mission critical applications in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates in two segments, Enterprise Solutions and Industrial Automation Solutions. The Enterprise Solutions segment offers copper cable and connectivity solutions, fiber cable and connectivity solutions, interconnect panels, racks and enclosures, and signal extension and matrix switching systems for use in applications, such as local area networks, data centers, access control, 5G, fiber to the home, and building automation.