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

Shares of Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFA) saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 238,414 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 208% from the previous session’s volume of 77,509 shares.The stock last traded at $262.4660 and had previously closed at $245.48.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BELFA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $250.00 target price on Bel Fuse in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Bel Fuse from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $250.00.

Bel Fuse Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.97 and a beta of 1.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $237.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $198.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 3.18 and a quick ratio of 1.73.

Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $178.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $172.07 million. Bel Fuse had a return on equity of 22.38% and a net margin of 7.84%.

Bel Fuse Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 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 is Wednesday, July 15th. Bel Fuse’s payout ratio is 5.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bel Fuse

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BELFA. Hound Partners LLC purchased a new position in Bel Fuse in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,714,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in Bel Fuse by 62.3% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 68,253 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $12,299,000 after purchasing an additional 26,200 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Bel Fuse during the third quarter worth about $1,628,000. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Bel Fuse by 434.9% during the third quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 13,336 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,552,000 after acquiring an additional 10,843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Bel Fuse by 314.2% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 12,729 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,932,000 after acquiring an additional 9,656 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.