Clearfield (NASDAQ:CLFD) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Clearfield, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLFD) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $42.64, but opened at $44.50. Clearfield shares last traded at $39.15, with a volume of 36,362 shares changing hands.

The communications equipment provider reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.34) by $0.30. Clearfield had a negative net margin of 1.79% and a negative return on equity of 1.08%. The firm had revenue of $48.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.13 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 20.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on CLFD. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Clearfield in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $47.00 price objective on shares of Clearfield in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Lake Street Capital upgraded shares of Clearfield from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $31.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Friday. Northland Securities raised shares of Clearfield from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Clearfield to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Clearfield

In related news, Chairman Ronald G. Roth bought 2,000 shares of Clearfield stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $36.40 per share, for a total transaction of $72,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,261,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,929,374.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 16.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Clearfield

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CLFD. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Clearfield by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,160,764 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $33,267,000 after buying an additional 10,370 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its holdings in Clearfield by 122.2% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 830,783 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $23,784,000 after acquiring an additional 456,879 shares during the period. ACK Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Clearfield during the 4th quarter valued at $13,025,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Clearfield by 1,247.7% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 210,717 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,128,000 after purchasing an additional 195,082 shares during the period. Finally, Smith Graham & Co. Investment Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Clearfield in the 4th quarter worth $5,148,000. 88.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Clearfield Price Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $39.22 and a 200 day moving average of $33.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $557.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -168.00 and a beta of 1.39.

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.