Quantedge Capital Pte Ltd Takes $1.51 Million Position in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC)

Quantedge Capital Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 13,400 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,509,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Belden during the fourth quarter worth $54,167,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in Belden by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,710,224 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $530,418,000 after acquiring an additional 223,887 shares during the period. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Belden in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,511,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Belden by 234.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 224,363 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $25,266,000 after purchasing an additional 157,335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Belden by 380.3% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 166,354 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $18,726,000 after purchasing an additional 131,719 shares during the period. 98.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Belden Price Performance

NYSE:BDC traded up $0.14 on Tuesday, reaching $111.52. The stock had a trading volume of 45,759 shares, compared to its average volume of 275,122. The company has a market capitalization of $4.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.18 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $100.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.99. Belden Inc. has a 1-year low of $83.18 and a 1-year high of $131.82. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.12. Belden had a return on equity of 21.42% and a net margin of 8.06%. The business had revenue of $624.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $615.81 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Belden Inc. will post 7.07 EPS for the current year.

Belden Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. Belden's payout ratio is 3.86%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jonathan C. Klein sold 2,129 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total transaction of $234,190.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,968 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,096,480. This trade represents a 17.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Leah Tate sold 231 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total value of $26,250.84. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 30,170 shares in the company, valued at $3,428,518.80. This represents a 0.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,259 shares of company stock valued at $2,340,577 in the last ninety days. 1.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on BDC shares. Loop Capital reduced their target price on Belden from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Belden from $139.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Belden in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Belden from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $126.20.

Belden Company 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.