Advisors Preferred LLC Buys New Shares in TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL)

Advisors Preferred LLC bought a new position in shares of TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 12,831 shares of the electronics maker's stock, valued at approximately $1,805,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in TE Connectivity in the fourth quarter valued at about $909,598,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of TE Connectivity by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,378,995 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $4,629,225,000 after purchasing an additional 4,029,596 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of TE Connectivity during the fourth quarter worth about $508,199,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in TE Connectivity by 72.1% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,064,822 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $581,148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,702,825 shares during the period. Finally, Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in TE Connectivity in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $127,351,000. 91.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP John S. Jenkins sold 30,000 shares of TE Connectivity stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.39, for a total transaction of $4,481,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,678,728.75. The trade was a 54.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Malavika Sagar sold 3,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 5,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $948,320. This trade represents a 34.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 240,675 shares of company stock valued at $39,794,121 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on TEL shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded TE Connectivity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Vertical Research upgraded TE Connectivity from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial increased their price target on TE Connectivity from $156.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. UBS Group raised their target price on TE Connectivity from $185.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on TE Connectivity from $168.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $194.80.

TE Connectivity Price Performance

Shares of TE Connectivity stock traded up $2.06 during trading on Friday, reaching $207.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,069,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,993,890. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. TE Connectivity Ltd. has a 12-month low of $116.30 and a 12-month high of $208.17. The company has a market capitalization of $61.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $169.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.77.

TE Connectivity (NYSE:TEL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The electronics maker reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.19. TE Connectivity had a return on equity of 20.22% and a net margin of 8.78%. The firm had revenue of $4.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that TE Connectivity Ltd. will post 8.05 EPS for the current year.

TE Connectivity Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. TE Connectivity's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.80%.

About TE Connectivity

TE Connectivity Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells connectivity and sensor solutions in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the AsiaPacific, and the Americas. The company operates through three segments: Transportation Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Communications Solutions.