Short Interest in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Increases By 6.5%

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 906,700 shares, an increase of 6.5% from the August 31st total of 851,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 284,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.2 days. Currently, 2.6% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Activity at Benchmark Electronics

In other news, Director Jeffrey Stephen Mccreary sold 7,073 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.70, for a total transaction of $302,017.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 42,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,794,552.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Benchmark Electronics

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Benchmark Electronics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $70,424,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 176.6% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 615,036 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $24,269,000 after buying an additional 392,699 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the 4th quarter worth $7,012,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 36.9% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 902,475 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $24,944,000 after acquiring an additional 243,480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Circumference Group LLC purchased a new stake in Benchmark Electronics during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,558,000. 92.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Benchmark Electronics Stock Performance

Benchmark Electronics stock traded down $1.26 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $43.06. 179,044 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 319,567. The firm has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of 23.51 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 2.35. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.57. Benchmark Electronics has a twelve month low of $22.66 and a twelve month high of $48.58.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.06. Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 7.17% and a net margin of 2.45%. The business had revenue of $666.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $635.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.48 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Benchmark Electronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. This is a boost from Benchmark Electronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is 37.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on BHE. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Benchmark Electronics from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Lake Street Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $35.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Benchmark Electronics currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.33.

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.