Hennessy Advisors Inc. Sells 647,700 Shares of Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Newell Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:NWL - Free Report) by 8.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,624,500 shares of the company's stock after selling 647,700 shares during the period. Newell Brands accounts for approximately 1.4% of Hennessy Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned approximately 1.59% of Newell Brands worth $41,072,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC increased its position in Newell Brands by 233.6% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,527,609 shares of the company's stock worth $144,695,000 after buying an additional 10,172,696 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Newell Brands in the fourth quarter worth $37,174,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Newell Brands by 21.4% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 18,089,297 shares of the company's stock worth $180,172,000 after purchasing an additional 3,188,718 shares during the period. FIL Ltd grew its stake in Newell Brands by 109.2% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 5,720,884 shares of the company's stock worth $56,980,000 after purchasing an additional 2,986,426 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Newell Brands by 214.1% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,349,136 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,357,000 after acquiring an additional 2,282,949 shares during the period. 92.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Newell Brands Price Performance

Newell Brands stock traded down $0.36 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $5.42. 9,528,433 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,409,875. Newell Brands Inc. has a one year low of $4.22 and a one year high of $11.78. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $5.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.33. The stock has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Newell Brands (NASDAQ:NWL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. Newell Brands had a negative net margin of 2.85% and a positive return on equity of 9.76%. Newell Brands's revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Newell Brands Inc. will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Newell Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. Newell Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently -47.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on NWL shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Newell Brands from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, May 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Newell Brands from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Newell Brands from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $6.00 to $7.00 in a research note on Friday. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Newell Brands from $5.50 to $5.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Newell Brands from $7.75 to $4.75 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Newell Brands currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $7.53.

Newell Brands Profile

Newell Brands Inc engages in the design, manufacture, sourcing, and distribution of consumer and commercial products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Home and Commercial Solutions, Learning and Development, and Outdoor and Recreation. The Commercial Solutions segment provides commercial cleaning and maintenance solution products under the Rubbermaid, Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Mapa, and Spontex brands; closet and garage organization products; hygiene systems and material handling solutions; household products, such as kitchen appliances under the Crockpot, Mr.