H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) Sets New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Shares of H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $52.65 and last traded at $53.98, with a volume of 633967 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on FUL. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of H.B. Fuller from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on H.B. Fuller from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 28th. Vertical Research cut H.B. Fuller from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Baird R W upgraded H.B. Fuller from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on H.B. Fuller from $75.00 to $72.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.50.

H.B. Fuller Trading Up 0.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.81. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.86. The stock has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.27.

H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.05. H.B. Fuller had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 3.65%. The firm had revenue of $788.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $769.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that H.B. Fuller will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

H.B. Fuller Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a $0.235 dividend. This is a boost from H.B. Fuller's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. H.B. Fuller's payout ratio is presently 47.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Celeste Beeks Mastin purchased 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $56.66 per share, with a total value of $198,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,310. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.99% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of H.B. Fuller

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Amundi lifted its position in H.B. Fuller by 191.9% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 28,553 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,804,000 after buying an additional 18,771 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in H.B. Fuller by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 554,947 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $37,448,000 after purchasing an additional 81,558 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC raised its position in H.B. Fuller by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 127,896 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $8,630,000 after purchasing an additional 15,100 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in H.B. Fuller in the fourth quarter valued at about $465,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of H.B. Fuller by 128.8% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 899 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.93% of the company's stock.

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.