Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stake in HNI Co. (NYSE:HNI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in HNI Co. (NYSE:HNI) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 250,181 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,716 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in HNI were worth $12,602,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of HNI by 219.9% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 739 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in HNI during the third quarter worth about $84,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of HNI by 4,746.7% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,181 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 2,136 shares during the period. Longboard Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of HNI during the 4th quarter worth approximately $213,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of HNI by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,501 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.26% of the company’s stock.

HNI Price Performance

HNI stock opened at $46.22 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.21 billion, a PE ratio of 15.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.90. HNI Co. has a 52 week low of $40.94 and a 52 week high of $58.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

HNI (NYSE:HNI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $642.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $657.03 million. HNI had a return on equity of 18.27% and a net margin of 5.52%. On average, equities research analysts predict that HNI Co. will post 3.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HNI Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. HNI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at HNI

In other news, insider Brian Scott Smith sold 556 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.90, for a total value 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Larry B. Porcellato sold 2,000 shares of HNI stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.95, for a total transaction of $113,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 37,880 shares in the company, valued at $2,157,266. This trade represents a 5.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com cut HNI from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st.

HNI 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.