New York State Teachers Retirement System Reduces Position in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE)

New York State Teachers Retirement System cut its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 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’s holdings in Benchmark Electronics were worth $3,199,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BHE. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,944,347 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $86,173,000 after purchasing an additional 159,659 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 820,493 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $36,364,000 after purchasing an additional 133,602 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 34.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 428,181 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $18,977,000 after purchasing an additional 109,903 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,334,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 128.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 86,024 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,814,000 after purchasing an additional 48,425 shares during the period. 92.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Benchmark Electronics Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of BHE opened at $41.10 on Friday. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.44 and a 1-year high of $52.57. The company has a 50-day moving average of $44.88 and a 200 day moving average of $44.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.76 and a beta of 0.99. 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 (NYSE:BHE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.65%. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BHE. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.