Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFA) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 66,018 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 1% from the previous session’s volume of 65,553 shares.The stock last traded at $216.5770 and had previously closed at $213.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on BELFA shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Bel Fuse from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Bel Fuse in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $250.00.

Bel Fuse Stock Up 3.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 3.02 and a quick ratio of 1.71. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $198.33 and its 200 day moving average is $161.59. The stock has a market cap of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.56 and a beta of 1.25.

Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.78. Bel Fuse had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm had revenue of $175.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $172.01 million.

Bel Fuse Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. Bel Fuse’s payout ratio is currently 5.16%.

Insider Activity at Bel Fuse

In other news, CEO Farouq Salem Ali Tuweiq sold 33,967 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.00, for a total value of $7,948,278.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter E. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.75, for a total transaction of $1,074,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,592,471.25. This trade represents a 23.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BELFA. Aristeia Capital L.L.C. boosted its stake in Bel Fuse by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Aristeia Capital L.L.C. now owns 11,094 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,684,000 after acquiring an additional 1,994 shares during the last quarter. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Bel Fuse in the 4th quarter worth about $243,000. Congruence Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Bel Fuse in the 4th quarter worth about $414,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in shares of Bel Fuse in the 4th quarter worth about $111,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Bel Fuse by 92.2% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 319 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. 6.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bel Fuse Company Profile

Bel Fuse Inc, incorporated in 1949 and headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey, designs and manufactures a broad range of electronic components aimed at ensuring reliable power delivery, circuit protection and signal connectivity. The company operates through two primary segments—Power Solutions Group and Telecom Products Group—serving original equipment manufacturers in multiple end markets, including telecommunications, data communications, consumer electronics, industrial and transportation.

Within its Power Solutions Group, Bel Fuse offers magnetic components such as power and signal transformers, inductors and coils, as well as circuit protection devices including fuses and resettable polyfuses.