What happened
Shares of Littelfuse (LFUS 0.71%) closed Monday's trading 11.3% higher. The maker of automotive sensors and electric circuit protection components was the subject of a bullish analyst report today.
So what
Analyst firm Baird raised its price target on Littelfuse from $152 to $155 per share, maintaining an outperform rating on the stock. Baird analyst David Leiker argued that the company entered the second quarter at "trough levels" for product demand, revenue, and profit margins. As such, all of these metrics should bounce back in the coming quarters.
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Now what
Economic trends will shape Littelfuse's stock chart in the second half, but the balance sheet looks strong enough to carry this company through a temporary downturn, according to Leiker.
The company ended the first quarter with $621 million of cash equivalents and $774 million of long-term debt papers, which does add up to a solid financial position. Littelfuse is a well-managed company with many levers to pull in order to make it through the COVID-19 crisis unharmed. It's no surprise to see the stock rise on an optimistic analyst report, especially since Littelfuse still trades 21% below its 52-week highs.
