Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFB) Short Interest Up 5.6% in January

Bel Fuse Inc. (NASDAQ:BELFB) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 324,200 shares, a growth of 5.6% from the December 31st total of 307,000 shares. Currently, 3.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 68,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.7 days.

Insider Transactions at Bel Fuse

In other news, VP Joseph Francis Berry sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.30, for a total value of $80,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $644,246.90. This represents a 11.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Stephen Dawson sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total transaction of $116,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 14,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,151,704.80. The trade was a 9.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bel Fuse

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Navellier & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bel Fuse by 68.0% in the fourth quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 23,415 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $1,931,000 after buying an additional 9,478 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Bel Fuse by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,222 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of Bel Fuse by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 16,427 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bel Fuse by 46.5% during the 4th quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 26,982 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $2,225,000 after purchasing an additional 8,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Bel Fuse by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 11,506 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $949,000 after purchasing an additional 523 shares during the period. 58.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BELFB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on Bel Fuse in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Bel Fuse from $79.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Bel Fuse from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $98.33.

Bel Fuse Price Performance

Bel Fuse stock opened at $78.18 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $981.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 4.00, a quick ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Bel Fuse has a 12 month low of $45.74 and a 12 month high of $92.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $82.06 and its 200-day moving average is $76.14.

About Bel Fuse

Bel Fuse Inc designs, manufactures, markets, and sells products that power, protect, and connect electronic circuits. The company’s products are used in the networking, telecommunications, computing, general industrial, high-speed data transmission, military, commercial aerospace, transportation, and e-Mobility industries.