H. B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) Director Michael Happe Buys 2,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Director Michael Happe purchased 2,000 H. B. Fuller shares at an average price of $49.62, investing $99,240 and increasing his direct ownership by nearly 149% to 3,343 shares.
• H. B. Fuller exceeded quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $1.52 versus $1.47 forecast, while revenue rose 5.2% year over year to $938.2 million but came in below estimates.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $64.62, although several firms recently lowered their targets; the company also pays a $0.98 annualized dividend yielding about 2%.

H. B. Fuller Company (NYSE:FUL - Get Free Report) Director Michael Happe acquired 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $49.62 per share, with a total value of $99,240.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 3,343 shares in the company, valued at $165,879.66. This represents a 148.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

H. B. Fuller Price Performance

FUL traded up $0.69 during trading on Thursday, reaching $50.16. 631,924 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 677,302. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.97. H. B. Fuller Company has a 1 year low of $46.70 and a 1 year high of $68.63. The business's 50 day moving average price is $55.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.21.

H. B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $938.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $945.59 million. H. B. Fuller had a return on equity of 12.65% and a net margin of 5.56%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that H. B. Fuller Company will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current year.

H. B. Fuller Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 30th were given a dividend of $0.2450 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 30th. This represents a $0.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. H. B. Fuller's payout ratio is presently 27.30%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On H. B. Fuller

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ellevest Inc. raised its stake in H. B. Fuller by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 3,626 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $216,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of H. B. Fuller by 85.6% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of H. B. Fuller by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 8,362 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $516,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of H. B. Fuller by 432.9% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 778 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in H. B. Fuller by 4.3% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 16,874 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 699 shares during the last quarter. 95.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FUL has been the subject of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on H. B. Fuller from $72.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on H. B. Fuller from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 25th. Raymond James Financial set a $67.00 price target on H. B. Fuller in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings cut H. B. Fuller from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of H. B. Fuller from $67.00 to $66.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, H. B. Fuller currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.62.

H. B. Fuller News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting H. B. Fuller this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ancora increased its cash offer for H. B. Fuller’s building adhesives unit to as much as $1.4 billion. The higher bid, reportedly backed by Fortress, improves the prospects for a value-enhancing transaction and increases pressure on H. B. Fuller’s board to consider strategic alternatives. Ancora raises bid for H.B. Fuller building unit
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple directors made sizable open-market purchases. Directors Srilata Zaheer, Charles T. Lauber, Teresa Rasmussen, Daniel L. Florness and Thomas W. Handley collectively bought approximately $500,000 of FUL shares at prices ranging from $48.96 to $49.87. The purchases substantially increased their individual holdings and may signal confidence that the shares are undervalued. H. B. Fuller insider purchase filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent quarterly results were mixed but fundamentally supportive. H. B. Fuller reported adjusted earnings of $1.52 per share, above the $1.47 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 5.2% year over year to about $938 million but fell short of expectations. Analysts expect approximately $4.83 in full-year earnings per share.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains a counterweight. JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank have issued cautious or pessimistic outlooks for FUL, reflecting concerns about valuation and the company’s operating outlook. Such views could limit gains if the potential asset sale does not progress. Deutsche Bank forecast for H. B. Fuller

H. B. Fuller Company Profile

H.B. Fuller Company is a global manufacturer of adhesives, sealants and specialty chemical products. Its solutions are used to bond, seal, protect and assemble materials in commercial and industrial applications, including packaging, hygiene products, construction, transportation, electronics and durable goods.

The company offers products such as hot-melt, water-based and reactive adhesives, construction adhesives, sealants, coatings and specialty formulations. H.B. Fuller serves manufacturers, contractors and other commercial customers that require bonding and sealing solutions for products, components and building materials.

Founded in 1887 by Harvey Benjamin Fuller, the company has grown from a regional adhesive producer into an international supplier serving customers across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.

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