Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Shares Purchased by Jennison Associates LLC

Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 40.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,972 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,870 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Benchmark Electronics were worth $1,724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 8.9% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,944,347 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $86,173,000 after purchasing an additional 159,659 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 19.5% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 820,493 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $36,364,000 after purchasing an additional 133,602 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 34.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 428,181 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $18,977,000 after purchasing an additional 109,903 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,334,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 128.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 86,024 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,814,000 after purchasing an additional 48,425 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Rhonda R. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.98, for a total transaction of $281,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 47,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,254,617.18. This trade represents a 11.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

NYSE BHE opened at $42.00 on Friday. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.44 and a 12 month high of $52.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.28 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.76.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is 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.