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

Key Points

• Strong quarterly results: Bel Fuse beat expectations with EPS of $1.88 vs. $1.10 estimated and revenue of $175.94 million, reporting a 9.11% net margin and 21.78% return on equity.
• Insider selling: CEO Farouq Salem Ali Tuweiq sold 33,967 shares for about $7.95 million and a director sold 4,500 shares, while insiders own roughly 5.46% of the stock.
• Market reaction and outlook: Shares were up about 3.7% to roughly $216.58 on elevated volume, and analysts hold a consensus Buy rating with a $250 consensus target.

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFA - Get Free Report) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 66,018 shares changed hands during mid-day 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on BELFA shares. Robert W. Baird set a $250.00 target price on shares of Bel Fuse in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Bel Fuse from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bel Fuse currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $250.00.

Bel Fuse Trading Up 3.7%

The firm has a market cap of $2.81 billion, a PE ratio of 47.56 and a beta of 1.25. The company's fifty day moving average price is $198.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $161.59. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analysts' expectations of $172.01 million.

Bel Fuse Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. Bel Fuse's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Farouq Salem Ali Tuweiq sold 33,967 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter E. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 5.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bel Fuse

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Bel Fuse by 92.2% in the third 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 period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Bel Fuse during the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position 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 during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Bel Fuse during the fourth quarter worth about $111,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its position 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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