Swiss National Bank Cuts Stake in TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL)

Swiss National Bank lessened its holdings in shares of TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE:TEL) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 858,600 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 48,100 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in TE Connectivity were worth $122,754,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TEL. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of TE Connectivity by 4.1% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 243,274 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $36,732,000 after buying an additional 9,670 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its stake in TE Connectivity by 13.9% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 194,264 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $29,322,000 after acquiring an additional 23,755 shares in the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. increased its holdings in TE Connectivity by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 101,640 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $14,531,000 after acquiring an additional 9,175 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in TE Connectivity in the 4th quarter worth $2,920,000. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of TE Connectivity by 21.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 69,349 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $10,471,000 after purchasing an additional 12,140 shares during the last quarter. 91.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

TE Connectivity Price Performance

TEL stock opened at $141.20 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $42.13 billion, a PE ratio of 22.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.32. TE Connectivity Ltd. has a 12 month low of $137.61 and a 12 month high of $159.98. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $148.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

TE Connectivity (NYSE:TEL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The electronics maker reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.06. TE Connectivity had a return on equity of 18.82% and a net margin of 12.10%. The business had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that TE Connectivity Ltd. will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

TE Connectivity Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. This is a boost from TE Connectivity’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. TE Connectivity’s dividend payout ratio is 41.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Shadrak W. Kroeger sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.77, for a total transaction of $3,669,250.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 25,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,812,497.52. This trade represents a 49.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TEL has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on TE Connectivity from $167.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on TE Connectivity from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup increased their target price on TE Connectivity from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of TE Connectivity from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of TE Connectivity from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $167.00.

About TE Connectivity

TE Connectivity Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells connectivity and sensor solutions in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the AsiaPacific, and the Americas. The company operates through three segments: Transportation Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Communications Solutions.