Lazard Asset Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC)

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC - Free Report) by 142.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,830 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,544 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Belden were worth $1,443,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Belden during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in Belden by 208.7% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 392 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Belden by 49.9% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 634 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Belden by 31.3% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 835 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Belden by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BDC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Belden from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Belden from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Belden from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Belden in a report on Monday, May 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $126.20.

Belden Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of Belden stock traded down $2.15 during trading on Friday, reaching $106.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 67,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 275,101. Belden Inc. has a 52-week low of $83.18 and a 52-week high of $131.82. The company has a market cap of $4.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.11 and a beta of 1.24. The firm's 50-day moving average is $101.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Belden (NYSE:BDC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $624.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $615.81 million. Belden had a net margin of 8.06% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Belden Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Belden Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 12th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.19%. Belden's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.86%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gregory James Mccray sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.21, for a total value of $441,882.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,199 shares in the company, valued at $441,776.79. This trade represents a 50.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ashish Chand sold 14,535 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.45, for a total transaction of $1,619,925.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,939,527.05. The trade was a 11.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,259 shares of company stock worth $2,340,577. 1.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Belden

Belden Inc designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of signal transmission solutions for mission critical applications in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates in two segments, Enterprise Solutions and Industrial Automation Solutions. The Enterprise Solutions segment offers copper cable and connectivity solutions, fiber cable and connectivity solutions, interconnect panels, racks and enclosures, and signal extension and matrix switching systems for use in applications, such as local area networks, data centers, access control, 5G, fiber to the home, and building automation.