Belden (NYSE:BDC) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Shares of Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $81.32, but opened at $88.31. Belden shares last traded at $88.01, with a volume of 46,501 shares trading hands.

The industrial products company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $536.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $514.27 million. Belden had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 25.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.68 earnings per share.

Belden Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.23%. Belden’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 3.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Belden from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Belden from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Belden

In other Belden news, EVP Brian Lieser sold 2,056 shares of Belden stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.30, for a total value of $169,208.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,791,835.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.59% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Belden

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Whittier Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Belden by 662.2% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Belden by 9.4% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 29,292 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,713,000 after acquiring an additional 2,507 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Belden by 11.6% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 105,684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,787,000 after purchasing an additional 11,010 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in Belden by 15.7% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 244,364 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,631,000 after purchasing an additional 33,160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Belden by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 171,484 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,881,000 after purchasing an additional 3,386 shares in the last quarter. 98.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Belden Stock Down 0.8 %

The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $87.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $78.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58 and a beta of 1.07.

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.