Electronic Components Stocks Q3 Highlights: Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA)

Bel Fuse has been on fire lately. In the past six months alone, the company’s stock price has rocketed 75.8%, reaching $143.05 per share. This was partly due to its solid quarterly results, and the performance may have investors wondering how to approach the situation.

Why Is Bel Fuse Not Exciting?

We’re happy investors have made money, but we're cautious about Bel Fuse. Here are two reasons we avoid BELFA and a stock we'd rather own.

1. Long-Term Revenue Growth Disappoints

A company’s long-term sales performance can indicate its overall quality. Any business can experience short-term success, but top-performing ones enjoy sustained growth for years. Regrettably, Bel Fuse’s sales grew at a mediocre 6.9% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years. This fell short of our benchmark for the industrials sector.

2. EPS Took a Dip Over the Last Two Years

Although long-term earnings trends give us the big picture, we like to analyze EPS over a shorter period to see if we are missing a change in the business.

Sadly for Bel Fuse, its EPS declined by more than its revenue over the last two years, dropping 6.9%. This tells us the company struggled to adjust to shrinking demand.

Final Judgment

Bel Fuse’s business quality ultimately falls short of our standards. Following the recent surge, the stock trades at 23.7× forward P/E (or $143.05 per share). While this valuation is reasonable, we don’t really see a big opportunity at the moment. We're fairly confident there are better investments elsewhere. We’d recommend looking at the Amazon and PayPal of Latin America.

The end of an earnings season can be a great time to discover new stocks and assess how companies are handling the current business environment. Let’s take a look at how Belden and the rest of the electronic components stocks fared in Q3.

Like many equipment and component manufacturers, electronic components companies are buoyed by secular trends such as connectivity and industrial automation. More specific pockets of strong demand include data centers and telecommunications, which can benefit companies whose optical and transceiver offerings fit those markets. But like the broader industrials sector, these companies are also at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending, for example, can greatly impact these companies’ volumes.

The 10 electronic components stocks we track reported a very strong Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 4.2% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 4.7% on average since the latest earnings results.

Belden

With its enamel-coated copper wire used in WWI for the Allied forces, Belden designs, manufactures, and sells electronic components to various industries.

Belden reported revenues of $698.2 million, up 6.6% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 2.7%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income and Enterprise revenue estimates.

"We are pleased to announce record Revenues and Adjusted EPS for the third quarter, a testament to our strategic focus and steady execution," said Ashish Chand, President and CEO of Belden Inc.

Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 2.7% since reporting and currently trades at $116.17.

Best Q3: Vicor

Founded by a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Vicor provides electrical power conversion and delivery products for a range of industries.

Vicor reported revenues of $110.4 million, up 18.5% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 15.7%. The business had an incredible quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Vicor scored the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 47.6% since reporting. It currently trades at $97.11.

Weakest Q3: Novanta

Originally a pioneer in the laser scanning industry during the late 1960s, Novanta offers medicine and manufacturing technology to the medical, life sciences, and manufacturing industries.

Novanta reported revenues of $247.8 million, up 1.4% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 0.8%. Still, it was a slower quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Novanta delivered the slowest revenue growth in the group. As expected, the stock is down 11.8% since the results and currently trades at $119.84.

Read our full analysis of Novanta’s results here.

nLIGHT

Founded by a former CEO and Harvard-educated entrepreneur Scott Keeneyn, nLIGHT offers semiconductor and fiber lasers to the industrial, aerospace & defense, and medical sectors.

nLIGHT reported revenues of $66.74 million, up 18.9% year on year. This number beat analysts’ expectations by 5.4%. Overall, it was an incredible quarter as it also produced EBITDA guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The stock is up 16.3% since reporting and currently trades at $34.65.

Read our full, actionable report on nLIGHT here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Bel Fuse

Founded by 26-year-old Elliot Bernstein during the electronics boom after WW2, Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELF.A) provides electronic systems and devices to the telecommunications, networking, transportation, and industrial sectors.

Bel Fuse reported revenues of $179 million, up 44.8% year on year. This result surpassed analysts’ expectations by 3.7%. It was an incredible quarter as it also recorded a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Bel Fuse scored the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 5.4% since reporting and currently trades at $143.05.

Read our full, actionable report on Bel Fuse here, it’s free for active Edge members.

What Happened?

Shares of electronic system and device provider Bel Fuse fell 4.4% in the morning session after the company's Chief Financial Officer, Lynn Katherine Hutkin, sold a significant number of shares. 

According to filings, Hutkin sold 5,000 shares for a total value of $848,388. The transactions were carried out at weighted average prices between $168.04 and $171.85. Such a large sale by a high-ranking executive can sometimes worry investors, as it might suggest that the insider believes the company's stock price has peaked or that they lack confidence in its short-term prospects. This can lead to broader selling pressure as other shareholders may decide to follow suit, putting downward pressure on the stock's price.

What Is The Market Telling Us

Bel Fuse’s shares are very volatile and have had 23 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 5 days ago when the stock dropped 3.1% on the news that reports revealed that Mexico approved new import tariffs that could affect the electronics industry. 

Mexico's Senate passed a measure to impose steep import duties, ranging from about 5% to as high as 50%, on a wide range of goods from countries without a free trade agreement with it. The electronics and machinery sector was among the industries expected to face a setback from the new duties, which were set to take effect on January 1, 2026. As a manufacturer of electronic products, Bel Fuse's stock fell as investors weighed the potential for increased costs or disruptions from the new trade policy.

Bel Fuse is up 65.2% since the beginning of the year, and at $146.43 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $155.40 from December 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Bel Fuse’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $9,238.

What Happened?

Shares of electronic system and device provider Bel Fuse fell 3.1% in the afternoon session after reports revealed that Mexico approved new import tariffs that could affect the electronics industry. 

Mexico's Senate passed a measure to impose steep import duties, ranging from about 5% to as high as 50%, on a wide range of goods from countries without a free trade agreement with it. The electronics and machinery sector was among the industries expected to face a setback from the new duties, which were set to take effect on January 1, 2026. As a manufacturer of electronic products, Bel Fuse's stock fell as investors weighed the potential for increased costs or disruptions from the new trade policy.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks. Is now the time to buy Bel Fuse? Access our full analysis report here.

What Is The Market Telling Us

Bel Fuse’s shares are very volatile and have had 23 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 22 days ago when the stock gained 3.2% on the news that strong results from chipmaker Nvidia eased lingering concerns about a potential bubble, especially in the tech sector. 

The tech giant delivered another blockbuster earnings report, with sales, profits, and guidance exceeding Wall Street expectations. CEO Jensen Huang let the data do the talking as he acknowledged the growing sentiment about an AI bubble, while affirming that sales for Nvidia's current-generation GPU, called Blackwell (mostly used for AI applications), are "off the charts." A stronger-than-expected September jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reinforced this bullish sentiment. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 119,000, easily surpassing the consensus estimates of 50,000. While the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4% and wage growth slowed slightly, the data suggest the U.S. economy remains on a firm footing.While this resilience made some investors unsure of the Fed's December rate decision, the market welcomed the news, rallying on the strength of a solid economy and a booming tech sector.

Bel Fuse is up 69.4% since the beginning of the year, and at $150.20 per share, it is trading close to its 52-week high of $155.40 from December 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Bel Fuse’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $10,667.