Belden

BDC

Communication Equipment · Technology

Price

$122.46

-1.43 (-1.15%)

Market Cap

$4.79B

Winston Score

Winston is curious

A decent business — some strong pillars, some weaker.

Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Jun 28, 2026

How the score breaks down

Quality

Good

Growth

Strong

Cash Flow

Strong

Stability

Strong

Valuation

Strong

Dividends

Weak

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Share count falling — buybacks

−11.4% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 45.4M (2021) → 40.2M (2025)

Winston Score History

The full picture

Belden Inc. makes cables, connectors, and networking equipment used to move data and signals reliably in tough environments. Its main customers are factories, hospitals, broadcast studios, and companies running industrial automation systems. Belden is one of the larger specialty signal transmission companies in the world, and it owns well-known brands like Hirschmann and Grass Valley.

Belden earns money by selling hardware — cables, switches, and related gear — along with software and services tied to industrial networking. The company operates globally, with significant revenue from North America and Europe, and generates around $2.5 billion in annual sales. Its moat comes from deep relationships with industrial customers who rely on Belden's products in critical infrastructure where switching suppliers is costly and risky. The key growth driver is rising demand for industrial automation and smart factory upgrades, though a slowdown in manufacturing capital spending remains the main near-term risk to revenue.

Growth Profile

For growth stock investors

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+11.6% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Steady revenue growth

EPS Growth

+14.3% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Steady EPS growth

R&D Spend

$128M/ year

↑ Rising (+14% vs prior year)

4.7% of revenue

Below sector average (15%)

R&D investment increasing — building for the future

Insider Activity

1.7%ownership

→ Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$349M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↓ Burn rate worsening

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth + cash flow

Belden is a rare growth stock that's already generating positive cash flow while growing at 12%. The Winston Score doesn't fully credit this transition from "burner" to "earner."

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

Each metric is explained in plain language so you know exactly what you're looking at. Start your free trial now.

Quality

Profit per sale

Gross Margin

39.1%

Modest — 39.1% gross margin

Profit after running costs

Operating Margin

13.2%

Healthy — 13.2% operating margin

Return on the money invested

ROCE

13.3%

Good — 13.3% return on capital

ROIC between 5% and 15%. They earn 5 to 15 cents back per year on every dollar invested.

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Growth

Sales growth

Sales YoY

+9.4%

Steady sales growth (+9.4% YoY)

Profit growth

EPS YoY

+11.2%

Earnings growing (+11.2% YoY)

Healthy double-digit earnings growth — what compounders look like.

How steady the profit is

EPS Consistency

7/8 quarters

Every recent quarter grew earnings vs last year

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash

Cash Conversion

154%

Turns 154% of profit into real cash

Spare cash per sale

FCF Margin

7.4%

Modest free cash flow (7.4%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns

Debt / Equity

0.95

Moderate — manageable debt (0.95)

Covers its interest

Interest Cover

15.01x

Comfortably covers interest (15.0x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit

P/E Ratio (TTM)

19.7x

Fair value — P/E 19.7

P/E in the normal range. Price is roughly $15 for every $1 of yearly profit.

Cheaper or dearer next year

P/E vs Forward

+4.3

GROWING

Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (19.7 → 15.4)

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Dividends

Dividend

Dividend Yield

0.15%

Small dividend — 0.15% yield

Modest yield. The bulk of any return needs to come from price appreciation.

Dividend record

Dividend Growth

+0.0%

Dividend flat

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