Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Trims Stock Position in HNI Corporation $HNI

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. reduced its shareholding in HNI Corporation by 43.7%, owning 250,000 shares valued at $11.1 million after selling 194,000 shares in the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds including Jane Street Group LLC and Nuveen LLC acquired new stakes in HNI during the same period, contributing to a 75.26% institutional ownership in the company.
• HNI recently reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.11, exceeding estimates, and announced a $0.34 quarterly dividend with a dividend yield of 2.9%.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lowered its position in HNI Corporation (NYSE:HNI - Free Report) by 43.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 250,000 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 194,000 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.54% of HNI worth $11,088,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in HNI by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,204,982 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $97,791,000 after buying an additional 19,287 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in HNI by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 474,140 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $23,882,000 after buying an additional 8,303 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in HNI by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 258,055 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $11,445,000 after buying an additional 7,874 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in HNI in the 1st quarter worth $10,301,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in HNI by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 230,453 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $10,221,000 after buying an additional 4,158 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.26% of the company's stock.

HNI Price Performance

Shares of HNI stock traded down $0.84 during trading on Friday, reaching $45.19. 643,763 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 674,955. The company has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 0.93. HNI Corporation has a 52-week low of $39.76 and a 52-week high of $58.42.

HNI (NYSE:HNI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.25. HNI had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 20.08%. The company had revenue of $667.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $646.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that HNI Corporation will post 3.6 EPS for the current year.

HNI Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. HNI's dividend payout ratio is 44.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Miguel M. Calado sold 1,743 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $92,379.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 30,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,594,505. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,943 shares of company stock valued at $203,037. Corporate insiders own 3.37% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HNI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna initiated coverage on shares of HNI in a report on Friday, May 16th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $80.00 target price for the company. Longbow Research assumed coverage on HNI in a research report on Friday, May 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HNI presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.00.

HNI Profile

HNI Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture, sale, and marketing of workplace furnishings and residential building products primarily in the United States and Canada. The company operates through two segments, Workplace Furnishings and Residential Building Products. The Workplace Furnishings segment offers a range of commercial and home office furniture, including panel-based and freestanding furniture systems, seating, storage, benching, tables, architectural products, and ancillary and hospitality products, as well as social collaborative items under the HON, Allsteel, Beyond, Gunlocke, HBF, HBF Textiles, HNI India, Kimball, National, Etc., Interwoven, David Edward, Kimball Hospitality, and D'style brands.