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

Belden Inc. (NYSE:BDC)’s share price 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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.19. Belden had a return on equity of 25.11% and a net margin of 9.66%. The company had revenue of $536.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $514.27 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 16.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Belden Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Belden’s payout ratio is currently 3.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Belden from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Belden from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.00.

Insider Transactions at Belden

In other news, EVP Brian Lieser sold 2,056 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.30, for a total transaction of $169,208.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,791,835.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.59% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Belden

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Belden in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its stake in Belden by 662.2% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Belden by 41.7% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 829 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in Belden during the 4th quarter valued at $72,000. Finally, TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Belden by 33,500.0% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,008 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares in the last quarter. 98.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Belden Trading Down 0.8 %

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

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.