Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC) Position Increased by MetLife Investment Management LLC

MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC - Free Report) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,614 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,999 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Belden worth $5,249,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Belden in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Belden by 49.9% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 634 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Belden by 31.3% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 835 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Belden by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $135,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Matrix Trust Co raised its stake in Belden by 624.8% during the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 1,522 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,312 shares during the period. 98.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Leah Tate sold 2,400 shares of Belden stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.77, for a total value of $275,448.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,243 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,667,599.11. The trade was a 9.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gregory James Mccray sold 4,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.21, for a total transaction of $441,882.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at $441,776.79. The trade was a 50.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,428 shares of company stock valued at $2,589,774 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on BDC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Belden from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Benchmark lowered their price objective on Belden from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. StockNews.com cut Belden from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Belden from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $126.20.

Belden Stock Performance

BDC stock traded down $0.49 on Tuesday, reaching $101.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 33,133 shares, compared to its average volume of 273,050. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $100.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $112.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $4.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.22 and a beta of 1.07. Belden Inc. has a 52 week low of $81.02 and a 52 week high of $131.82.

Belden (NYSE:BDC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.24. Belden had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 8.06%. As a group, analysts predict that Belden Inc. will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Belden Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.20%. Belden's dividend payout ratio is presently 4.16%.

Belden Profile

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.