Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Thursday morning.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on BELFB. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Bel Fuse in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Bel Fuse from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bel Fuse presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $100.00.

Bel Fuse Price Performance

Shares of BELFB opened at $84.51 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $81.81 and its 200-day moving average is $77.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 4.00 and a quick ratio of 2.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 25.84, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.28. Bel Fuse has a fifty-two week low of $45.74 and a fifty-two week high of $92.61.

Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The electronics maker reported ($0.14) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.96 by ($1.10). The company had revenue of $149.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $126.41 million. Bel Fuse had a net margin of 7.66% and a return on equity of 12.41%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.29 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Bel Fuse will post 5.65 EPS for the current year.

Bel Fuse Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. Bel Fuse’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Joseph Francis Berry sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.30, for a total transaction of $80,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $644,246.90. This represents a 11.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bel Fuse

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Bel Fuse in the 4th quarter valued at $517,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Bel Fuse by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 20,254 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $1,670,000 after buying an additional 4,204 shares in the last quarter. Tema Etfs LLC bought a new position in Bel Fuse in the fourth quarter valued at about $702,000. Potrero Capital Research LLC grew its position in Bel Fuse by 107.1% in the fourth quarter. Potrero Capital Research LLC now owns 145,986 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $12,039,000 after acquiring an additional 75,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Bel Fuse during the fourth quarter worth about $240,000. 58.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bel Fuse Company Profile

Bel Fuse Inc designs, manufactures, markets, and sells products that power, protect, and connect electronic circuits. The company’s products are used in the networking, telecommunications, computing, general industrial, high-speed data transmission, military, commercial aerospace, transportation, and e-Mobility industries.