KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes Position in H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 11,600 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $783,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FUL. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of H.B. Fuller by 128.8% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 899 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in H.B. Fuller in the 4th quarter worth about $266,000. Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its holdings in H.B. Fuller by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 13,700 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $924,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in H.B. Fuller by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,258,752 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $99,939,000 after purchasing an additional 18,734 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in H.B. Fuller by 191.9% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 28,553 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,804,000 after purchasing an additional 18,771 shares during the period. 95.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

H.B. Fuller Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FUL traded down $1.68 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $52.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 635,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 363,695. The company has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.27. H.B. Fuller has a 12-month low of $51.16 and a 12-month high of $87.67. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $57.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.81.

H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.05. H.B. Fuller had a net margin of 3.65% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $788.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $769.55 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.67 EPS. The business's revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that H.B. Fuller will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

H.B. Fuller Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.2225 per share. This represents a $0.89 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. H.B. Fuller's payout ratio is presently 44.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on FUL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on H.B. Fuller from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Vertical Research cut shares of H.B. Fuller from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of H.B. Fuller from $75.00 to $72.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of H.B. Fuller from $78.00 to $68.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $63.33.

Insider Activity at H.B. Fuller

In other H.B. Fuller news, CEO Celeste Beeks Mastin acquired 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $56.66 per share, with a total value of $198,310.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 3,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $198,310. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

H.B. Fuller 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.