Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Short Interest Update

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,170,000 shares, a decline of 6.4% from the January 15th total of 1,250,000 shares. Currently, 3.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 253,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.6 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 418,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,947,418.63. The trade was a 1.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Benchmark Electronics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHE. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Benchmark Electronics during the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in Benchmark Electronics by 125.3% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,534 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 853 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 54.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 12.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,547 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 213.4% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 3,563 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $162,000 after buying an additional 2,426 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BHE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. 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 note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BHE traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $41.74. The company had a trading volume of 33,682 shares, compared to its average volume of 237,940. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Benchmark Electronics has a twelve month low of $27.44 and a twelve month high of $52.57. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.12 and a beta of 0.99.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last announced its 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is currently 39.31%.

About Benchmark Electronics

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.