Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFB) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFB) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 311,000 shares, a decrease of 8.2% from the September 15th total of 338,800 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 71,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BELFB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Bel Fuse from $68.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Northland Securities upped their price objective on Bel Fuse from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Bel Fuse from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded Bel Fuse from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th.

Bel Fuse Price Performance

BELFB traded down $0.44 during trading on Thursday, reaching $84.56. 14,167 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 93,078. The company has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.31 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 2.76, a current ratio of 4.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company’s 50-day moving average is $71.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.88. Bel Fuse has a 12-month low of $39.13 and a 12-month high of $85.91.

Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The electronics maker reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.58. The business had revenue of $133.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $130.27 million. Bel Fuse had a return on equity of 20.97% and a net margin of 11.81%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.95 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Bel Fuse will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bel Fuse Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. Bel Fuse’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.71%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bel Fuse

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Beach Investment Counsel Inc. PA bought a new position in Bel Fuse during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Isthmus Partners LLC bought a new position in Bel Fuse during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Bel Fuse during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Comerica Bank grew its position in Bel Fuse by 223.7% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 738 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new stake in Bel Fuse in the 1st quarter worth approximately $173,000. 58.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Bel Fuse

Bel Fuse Inc designs, manufactures, markets, and sells products that are used in the networking, telecommunications, computing, general industrial, high-speed data transmission, military, commercial aerospace, transportation, and e-Mobility industries in the United States, the People's Republic of China, Macao, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Germany, India, Switzerland, and internationally.