H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

H.B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $64.14, but opened at $62.69. H.B. Fuller shares last traded at $62.04, with a volume of 62,875 shares.

The specialty chemicals company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by ($0.08). H.B. Fuller had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The company had revenue of $923.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $916.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FUL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Vertical Research cut shares of H.B. Fuller from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of H.B. Fuller from $78.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded H.B. Fuller from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On H.B. Fuller

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of H.B. Fuller by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 290,005 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $22,319,000 after buying an additional 26,239 shares during the last quarter. S&CO Inc. increased its stake in H.B. Fuller by 0.3% in the third quarter. S&CO Inc. now owns 267,192 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $21,209,000 after acquiring an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised 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 valued at $99,939,000 after purchasing an additional 18,734 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its stake in H.B. Fuller by 79.8% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 730,058 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $57,952,000 after purchasing an additional 324,056 shares during the last quarter. 95.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

H.B. Fuller Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $71.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $76.99.

About H.B. Fuller

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.