Clearfield (NASDAQ:CLFD) Downgraded to “Sell” Rating by StockNews.com

Clearfield (NASDAQ:CLFD) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Separately, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Clearfield in a research note on Friday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Clearfield presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.75.

Clearfield Stock Down 2.2 %

NASDAQ CLFD opened at $32.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 6.69, a current ratio of 9.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Clearfield has a 52 week low of $24.78 and a 52 week high of $44.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $466.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -38.39 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a fifty day moving average of $33.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.05.

Clearfield (NASDAQ:CLFD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.19) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $46.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $41.95 million. Clearfield had a negative net margin of 7.47% and a negative return on equity of 4.41%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.17 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Clearfield will post -0.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Clearfield

In related news, Chairman Ronald G. Roth bought 5,000 shares of Clearfield stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $31.00 per share, with a total value of $155,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,266,796 shares in the company, valued at $39,270,676. The trade was a 0.40 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 16.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Clearfield

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CLFD. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Clearfield during the 2nd quarter valued at $7,801,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Clearfield by 83.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 228,173 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,798,000 after buying an additional 103,648 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Clearfield by 164.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 87,971 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,428,000 after acquiring an additional 54,670 shares in the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its stake in Clearfield by 12.2% in the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 249,087 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $9,704,000 after acquiring an additional 27,178 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Clearfield during the 2nd quarter worth about $835,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.73% of the company’s stock.

About Clearfield

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.