H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $80.63, but opened at $76.20. H.B. Fuller shares last traded at $79.21, with a volume of 114,960 shares traded.

The specialty chemicals company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $917.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $944.04 million. H.B. Fuller had a net margin of 4.67% and a return on equity of 13.33%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.06 EPS.

H.B. Fuller Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $0.2225 per share. This is an increase from H.B. Fuller’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.89 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. H.B. Fuller’s dividend payout ratio is 30.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded H.B. Fuller from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling at H.B. Fuller

In other H.B. Fuller news, VP Heather Campe sold 23,696 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.66, for a total transaction of $1,958,711.36. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 19,742 shares in the company, valued at $1,631,873.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On H.B. Fuller

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FUL. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of H.B. Fuller by 9.9% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 290,005 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $22,319,000 after buying an additional 26,239 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its position in shares of H.B. Fuller by 8.1% in the second quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 71,354 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,491,000 after buying an additional 5,356 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of H.B. Fuller by 1.4% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 525,731 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,460,000 after buying an additional 7,292 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of H.B. Fuller by 3.1% in the second quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 88,348 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,799,000 after buying an additional 2,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of H.B. Fuller in the first quarter worth $79,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.93% of the company’s stock.

H.B. Fuller Stock Down 0.8 %

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $4.37 billion, a PE ratio of 27.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.42.

H.B. Fuller Company Profile

H.B. Fuller Company, together with its subsidiaries, formulates, manufactures, and markets adhesives, sealants, coatings, polymers, tapes, encapsulants, additives, and other specialty chemical products. It operates through three segments: Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives; Engineering Adhesives; and Construction Adhesives.