Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFB) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFB) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $164.20.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BELFB. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bel Fuse from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, December 21st. Robert W. Baird set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Bel Fuse in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Oppenheimer set a $180.00 target price on shares of Bel Fuse and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bel Fuse in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Bel Fuse from $130.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th.

Bel Fuse Stock Performance

Shares of BELFB opened at $174.34 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $159.32 and a 200 day moving average of $137.13. The company has a market capitalization of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.53, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.55. Bel Fuse has a 12 month low of $57.99 and a 12 month high of $179.41. The company has a current ratio of 3.06, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Bel Fuse Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 15th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Bel Fuse’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.38%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Joseph Berry sold 408 shares of Bel Fuse stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.23, for a total value of $58,845.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 17,893 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,707.39. This trade represents a 2.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Kenneth Koon Keung Lai sold 564 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.96, for a total transaction of $80,065.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,100,899.80. This trade represents a 6.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,027 shares of company stock valued at $435,034. 5.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bel Fuse

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Bel Fuse by 28.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 325,800 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $31,827,000 after purchasing an additional 71,895 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Bel Fuse by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 321,922 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $31,451,000 after buying an additional 8,243 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Bel Fuse by 33.6% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 284,014 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $27,745,000 after buying an additional 71,390 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Bel Fuse by 66.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 245,248 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $34,584,000 after buying an additional 98,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in shares of Bel Fuse by 0.8% in the second quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 196,519 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $19,198,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577 shares during the period. 58.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Bel Fuse

Bel Fuse Inc is a global manufacturer of electronic components that bridge power, data and video applications. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of products, including board-level circuit protection devices such as fuses, positive temperature coefficient (PTC) resistors and inductors; power transformers, modules and supplies; as well as connectivity solutions encompassing USB, HDMI, RJ45, coaxial and fiber-optic connectors. These products serve a wide array of end markets, including telecommunications, data communications, consumer electronics, industrial automation, automotive and renewable energy.

Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Oradell, New Jersey, Bel Fuse has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.