Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFA)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $252.89, but opened at $227.42. Bel Fuse shares last traded at $224.7090, with a volume of 3,144 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Bel Fuse from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird set a $250.00 target price on Bel Fuse in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $250.00.

Bel Fuse Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.02, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a PE ratio of 50.22 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $205.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $173.50.

Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.10. Bel Fuse had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The business had revenue of $178.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $171.74 million.

Bel Fuse Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Bel Fuse

In other news, Director Peter E. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.75, for a total value of $1,074,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 15,047 shares in the company, valued at $3,592,471.25. This represents a 23.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Farouq Salem Ali Tuweiq sold 33,967 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.00, for a total value of $7,948,278.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 4.75% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bel Fuse

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Bel Fuse in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Bel Fuse by 447.1% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 744 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 608 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Bel Fuse in the fourth quarter worth approximately $111,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Bel Fuse by 41.5% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 2,613 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $188,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares during the last quarter. 6.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Bel Fuse

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.