Federated Hermes Inc. Buys 446,398 Shares of Methode Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:MEI)

Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in Methode Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:MEI) by 46.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,413,611 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 446,398 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Methode Electronics were worth $16,666,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its holdings in Methode Electronics by 263.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 52,796 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $631,000 after purchasing an additional 38,259 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Methode Electronics by 112.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 127,917 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $1,530,000 after purchasing an additional 67,656 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Methode Electronics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,678,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Methode Electronics by 2.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 802,728 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $9,603,000 after purchasing an additional 20,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Methode Electronics by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 117,481 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $1,385,000 after acquiring an additional 5,677 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.49% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Methode Electronics

In other Methode Electronics news, SVP Lars Ullrich acquired 15,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.69 per share, with a total value of $101,353.50. Following the purchase, the senior vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,353.50. This represents a ? increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jonathan B. Degaynor acquired 32,733 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.46 per share, with a total value of $211,455.18. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 32,733 shares in the company, valued at approximately $211,455.18. This represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MEI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Methode Electronics from $14.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Sidoti upgraded shares of Methode Electronics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Methode Electronics Stock Up 11.2 %

Shares of MEI stock opened at $5.95 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $212.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.35 and a beta of 0.93. Methode Electronics, Inc. has a one year low of $5.08 and a one year high of $17.45. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $8.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 1.73.

Methode Electronics (NYSE:MEI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 5th. The electronics maker reported ($0.21) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $239.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $264.01 million. Methode Electronics had a negative net margin of 8.16% and a negative return on equity of 3.26%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.33) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Methode Electronics, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methode Electronics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, April 18th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.41%. Methode Electronics’s payout ratio is -21.46%.

Methode Electronics Company Profile

Methode Electronics, Inc designs, engineers, and produces mechatronic products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Automotive, Industrial, Interface, and Medical. The Automotive segment supplies electronic and electro-mechanical devices, and related products to automobile original equipment manufacturers directly or through their tiered suppliers.