H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) Sets New 1-Year High on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $83.85 and last traded at $82.97, with a volume of 60581 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $82.58.

The specialty chemicals company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $810.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $823.04 million. H.B. Fuller had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 4.13%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.55 EPS.

H.B. Fuller Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 7th were issued a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 6th. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. H.B. Fuller’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on FUL. StockNews.com raised H.B. Fuller from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Vertical Research initiated coverage on H.B. Fuller in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of H.B. Fuller in a report on Friday, January 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on H.B. Fuller from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $84.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Heather Campe sold 3,450 shares of H.B. Fuller stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.83, for a total value of $265,063.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 19,736 shares in the company, valued at $1,516,316.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other H.B. Fuller news, VP Muhammad Shahbaz Malik sold 14,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.28, for a total transaction of $1,067,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,089 shares in the company, valued at $693,308.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Heather Campe sold 3,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.83, for a total value of $265,063.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 19,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,516,316.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 30,693 shares of company stock worth $2,353,357. Corporate insiders own 1.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of H.B. Fuller

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Security National Bank of SO Dak bought a new position in H.B. Fuller in the fourth quarter worth approximately $236,000. Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its stake in H.B. Fuller by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 11,353 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $924,000 after buying an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its stake in H.B. Fuller by 2,588.7% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 335,119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,282,000 after buying an additional 322,655 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new position in H.B. Fuller in the fourth quarter worth approximately $738,000. Finally, Partners Capital Investment Group LLP bought a new position in H.B. Fuller in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,598,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.93% of the company’s stock.

H.B. Fuller Stock Up 1.2 %

The company has a market cap of $4.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The business’s 50 day moving average is $78.28 and its 200 day moving average is $75.30.

About H.B. Fuller

H.B. Fuller Company, together with its subsidiaries, formulates, manufactures, and markets adhesives, sealants, coatings, polymers, tapes, encapsulants, additives, and other specialty chemical products in North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia Pacific, India, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally.