Franklin Resources Inc. Cuts Stake in HNI Co. (NYSE:HNI)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its stake in shares of HNI Co. (NYSE:HNI) by 16.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,722,641 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 349,987 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 3.60% of HNI worth $86,769,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HNI. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of HNI by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,718,014 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $288,016,000 after acquiring an additional 62,476 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in HNI by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,876,542 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $101,033,000 after purchasing an additional 20,717 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in HNI by 275.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,836,205 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $98,861,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346,999 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in HNI during the 4th quarter worth $69,253,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of HNI by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,084,830 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $58,419,000 after buying an additional 7,553 shares in the last quarter. 75.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HNI Price Performance

NYSE:HNI opened at $45.39 on Thursday. HNI Co. has a one year low of $40.94 and a one year high of $58.42. The stock has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 15.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.69.

HNI (NYSE:HNI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.13. HNI had a return on equity of 18.27% and a net margin of 5.52%. The company had revenue of $642.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $657.03 million. Equities research analysts expect that HNI Co. will post 3.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HNI Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. HNI’s payout ratio is 45.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of HNI from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Brian Scott Smith sold 556 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.90, for a total transaction of $27,744.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $718,260.60. This represents a 3.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

HNI Company Profile

HNI Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture, sale, and marketing of workplace furnishings and residential building products primarily in the United States and Canada. The company operates through two segments, Workplace Furnishings and Residential Building Products. The Workplace Furnishings segment offers a range of commercial and home office furniture, including panel-based and freestanding furniture systems, seating, storage, benching, tables, architectural products, and ancillary and hospitality products, as well as social collaborative items under the HON, Allsteel, Beyond, Gunlocke, HBF, HBF Textiles, HNI India, Kimball, National, Etc., Interwoven, David Edward, Kimball Hospitality, and D'style brands.