Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Shares Sold by First Eagle Investment Management LLC

First Eagle Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) by 17.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 239,279 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 51,400 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Benchmark Electronics were worth $10,863,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 55.2% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 39,439 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,748,000 after purchasing an additional 14,020 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 120,126 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,324,000 after acquiring an additional 25,769 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Benchmark Electronics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $868,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 841,602 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $37,307,000 after acquiring an additional 21,355 shares during the period. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 428.1% during the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 32,887 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 26,660 shares during the period. 92.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented 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 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.00.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

NYSE:BHE opened at $39.32 on Friday. 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 cap of $1.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $42.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.43. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.44 and a 1-year high of $52.57.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,947,418.63. The trade was a 1.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Benchmark Electronics 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.