Royce & Associates LP Boosts Stock Position in Clearfield, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLFD)

Royce & Associates LP raised its position in shares of Clearfield, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLFD) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 478,809 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,464 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Clearfield were worth $14,843,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Clearfield during the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Clearfield during the 3rd quarter valued at about $80,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Clearfield by 45.5% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,297 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $164,000 after purchasing an additional 1,656 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Clearfield during the 4th quarter valued at about $233,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Clearfield during the 3rd quarter valued at about $578,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on CLFD shares. StockNews.com upgraded Clearfield from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 target price on shares of Clearfield in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO John P. Hill sold 16,539 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.26, for a total value of $550,087.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 189,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,315,608.36. This represents a 8.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 17.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Clearfield Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of CLFD opened at $30.11 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $425.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -47.79 and a beta of 1.26. Clearfield, Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.94 and a 52 week high of $44.83. The company has a quick ratio of 7.41, a current ratio of 10.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $34.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.43.

Clearfield (NASDAQ:CLFD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.13. Clearfield had a negative return on equity of 3.31% and a negative net margin of 5.41%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Clearfield, Inc. will post -0.29 EPS for the current year.

Clearfield Company Profile

Clearfield, Inc manufactures and sells various fiber connectivity products in the United States and internationally. The company offers FieldSmart, a series of panels, cabinets, wall boxes, and other enclosures; WaveSmart, an optical components integrated for signal coupling, splitting, termination, multiplexing, demultiplexing, and attenuation for integration within its fiber management platform; and active cabinet products.