Hooker Furnishings Co. (NASDAQ:HOFT) Shares Purchased by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hooker Furnishings Co. (NASDAQ:HOFT) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,623 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,435 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Hooker Furnishings were worth $723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hooker Furnishings in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Baron Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hooker Furnishings in the third quarter valued at $215,000. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 270.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 15,463 shares of the company’s stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 11,288 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 26.4% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 19,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 3,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 107.5% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 43,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $790,000 after purchasing an additional 22,635 shares during the period. 73.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hooker Furnishings Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HOFT opened at $13.05 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.65. Hooker Furnishings Co. has a 12 month low of $12.06 and a 12 month high of $24.96.

Hooker Furnishings (NASDAQ:HOFT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.22). Hooker Furnishings had a negative return on equity of 3.51% and a negative net margin of 2.46%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hooker Furnishings Co. will post -0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hooker Furnishings Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.05%. Hooker Furnishings’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -101.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Hooker Furnishings from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Paulette Garafalo sold 2,489 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.10, for a total transaction of $42,561.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,783 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $355,389.30. This trade represents a 10.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hooker Furnishings Profile

Hooker Furnishings Corporation designs, manufactures, imports, and markets residential household, hospitality, and contract furniture. It operates in three segments: Hooker Branded, Home Meridian, and Domestic Upholstery. The Hooker Branded segment offers design categories, including home entertainment, home office, accent, dining, and bedroom furniture under the Hooker Furniture brand; and imported upholstered furniture under the Hooker Upholstery brand.