Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Bel Fuse hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $227.66 and last at $230.81 while the stock was up about 4.9%, with a market capitalization of $2.94 billion.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $250 with mixed ratings (one Strong Buy, one Hold) and Weiss Ratings recently downgrading the stock to Hold.
• The company reported a strong quarterly beat with EPS $1.88 vs. $1.10 expected and declared a $0.06 quarterly dividend, but insiders recently sold large blocks of shares (CEO sold 33,967 shares, ≈$7.95M).

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFA - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $227.66 and last traded at $230.8090, with a volume of 2871 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $217.20.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BELFA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Bel Fuse from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note 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 investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $250.00.

Bel Fuse Trading Up 4.9%

The company has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.86 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $201.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $165.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

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

Bel Fuse Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Bel Fuse

In other news, CEO Farouq Salem Ali Tuweiq sold 33,967 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.00, for a total value of $7,948,278.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter E. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were 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 owned 15,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders own 5.46% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Bel Fuse

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Bel Fuse by 92.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 319 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Bel Fuse during the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Bel Fuse by 447.1% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 744 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Bel Fuse during the fourth quarter worth about $111,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 6.01% of the company's stock.

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.

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