Inspire Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in HNI Corporation (NYSE:HNI)

Key Points

• Inspire Advisors LLC significantly increased its stake in HNI Corporation by 55.3% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 0.12% of the company worth $2.43 million.
• HNI Corporation's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $1.11, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.86, with revenues of $667.10 million indicating a 7% year-over-year growth.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.34 per share, reflecting an increase from the previous $0.33, which corresponds to an annual yield of 2.60%.

Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of HNI Corporation (NYSE:HNI - Free Report) by 55.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,913 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 19,549 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.12% of HNI worth $2,435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in HNI by 140.2% during the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 18,811 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $834,000 after purchasing an additional 10,978 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in HNI by 1.8% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 230,453 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $10,221,000 after purchasing an additional 4,158 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in HNI by 35.0% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38,558 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,710,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in HNI by 14.0% during the first quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 16,276 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in HNI by 3,984.9% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,165 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 2,112 shares during the period. 75.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jason Dean Hagedorn sold 1,440 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.07, for a total transaction of $67,780.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 36,711 shares in the company, valued at $1,727,986.77. This represents a 3.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Miguel M. Calado sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 31,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,591,400. This trade represents a 5.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,383 shares of company stock valued at $270,818. Insiders own 3.37% of the company's stock.

HNI Price Performance

Shares of HNI stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $51.99. The stock had a trading volume of 54,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 325,645. The stock's 50 day moving average is $49.07 and its 200 day moving average is $46.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a PE ratio of 16.88, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.92. HNI Corporation has a twelve month low of $39.76 and a twelve month high of $58.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

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

HNI Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. This is an increase from HNI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. HNI's dividend payout ratio is 44.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna assumed coverage on shares of HNI in a research report on Friday, May 16th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $80.00 price objective for the company. Longbow Research assumed coverage on shares of HNI in a research report on Friday, May 16th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of HNI from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th.

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.