Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

StockNews.com cut shares of Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

BELFB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Northland Securities cut shares of Bel Fuse from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and set a $63.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Bel Fuse from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th.

Bel Fuse Stock Performance

BELFB traded down $0.53 on Friday, hitting $58.04. The company had a trading volume of 89,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 86,174. The stock has a market cap of $740.59 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.77 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 4.21 and a quick ratio of 2.70. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $57.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.11. Bel Fuse has a 1-year low of $39.13 and a 1-year high of $74.75.

Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The electronics maker reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $140.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $152.86 million. Bel Fuse had a return on equity of 23.58% and a net margin of 12.62%. Equities analysts predict that Bel Fuse will post 4.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bel Fuse Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 12th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Bel Fuse’s payout ratio is currently 4.71%.

Insider Activity at Bel Fuse

In related news, Director Vincent Vellucci sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.70, for a total value of $56,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $419,126.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 5.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bel Fuse

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BELFB. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bel Fuse during the first quarter worth about $760,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of Bel Fuse by 11.8% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 41,958 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $2,530,000 after acquiring an additional 4,426 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Bel Fuse by 73.5% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,862 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 2,484 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Bel Fuse in the first quarter worth $173,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Bel Fuse during the first quarter worth $471,000. 58.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bel Fuse Company Profile

Bel Fuse Inc designs, manufactures, markets, and sells products that are used in the networking, telecommunications, computing, general industrial, high-speed data transmission, military, commercial aerospace, transportation, and e-Mobility industries in the United States, the People's Republic of China, Macao, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Germany, India, Switzerland, and internationally.