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

Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) saw 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. Based on an average daily volume of 253,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.6 days. Approximately 3.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. 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 company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.00.

Benchmark Electronics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BHE opened at $42.11 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.34 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.72. Benchmark Electronics has a 52 week low of $27.44 and a 52 week high of $52.57. 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 (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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. Benchmark Electronics’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Benchmark Electronics news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.31, for a total transaction of $271,860.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 418,173 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,947,418.63. This represents a 1.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Benchmark Electronics

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 569.5% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 416,831 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $17,638,000 after buying an additional 354,567 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 45.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 815,499 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $37,024,000 after purchasing an additional 253,730 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,153,257 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $52,358,000 after purchasing an additional 166,967 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 90.4% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 336,466 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $15,276,000 after purchasing an additional 159,769 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.29% of the company’s stock.

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.