Mackenzie Financial Corp Cuts Stock Position in Belden Inc (NYSE:BDC)

Key Points

• Mackenzie Financial Corp reduced its ownership in Belden Inc by 67.5%, selling 5,940 shares and retaining 2,854 shares valued at approximately $286,000.
• Belden's stock achieved a 52-week high of $132.99 and reported a quarterly revenue increase of 11.2% year-over-year, totaling $671.99 million.
• Analyst ratings for Belden have shown mixed signals, with Wall Street Zen downgrading to a "buy" rating, while Benchmark raised the target price from $130 to $145, maintaining a "buy" stance.

Mackenzie Financial Corp decreased its stake in Belden Inc (NYSE:BDC - Free Report) by 67.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,854 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 5,940 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp's holdings in Belden were worth $286,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BDC. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Belden by 27.3% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 4,806 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $541,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in Belden during the 4th quarter valued at about $986,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in Belden by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 40,357 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,545,000 after purchasing an additional 4,859 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Belden by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,530 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,564,000 after purchasing an additional 3,795 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Belden by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 8,872 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $999,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Belden

In other Belden news, SVP Brian Edward Anderson sold 7,158 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.51, for a total transaction of $934,190.58. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 39,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,164,802.74. This represents a 15.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.48% of the company's stock.

Belden Price Performance

Shares of BDC traded up $1.52 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $126.48. The stock had a trading volume of 60,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 283,142. The firm has a market cap of $5.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.91 and a beta of 1.28. Belden Inc has a 12 month low of $83.18 and a 12 month high of $132.99. The business has a fifty day moving average of $118.77 and a 200 day moving average of $110.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.99.

Belden (NYSE:BDC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $671.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $654.82 million. Belden had a net margin of 8.60% and a return on equity of 23.29%. The company's revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.51 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Belden Inc will post 7.07 EPS for the current year.

Belden Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 12th were issued a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 12th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Belden's dividend payout ratio is presently 3.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Belden from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Belden from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Belden in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Belden currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $136.50.

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.