Hooker Furnishings (NASDAQ:HOFT) Lowered to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Hooker Furnishings (NASDAQ:HOFT) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

Hooker Furnishings Stock Performance

Shares of HOFT opened at $13.13 on Wednesday. Hooker Furnishings has a fifty-two week low of $12.06 and a fifty-two week high of $25.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a current ratio of 3.16. The company’s fifty day moving average is $14.06 and its 200 day moving average is $15.70.

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

Hooker Furnishings Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.01%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Hooker Furnishings’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -101.10%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Paulette Garafalo sold 2,489 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.10, for a total value of $42,561.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,783 shares in the company, valued at approximately $355,389.30. This trade represents a 10.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hooker Furnishings

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 56.6% during the third quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 20,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,000 after buying an additional 7,422 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Hooker Furnishings during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Hooker Furnishings by 5.2% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 49,188 shares of the company’s stock worth $889,000 after acquiring an additional 2,412 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hooker Furnishings during the third quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,286,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,258,000 after acquiring an additional 13,524 shares in the last quarter. 73.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Hooker Furnishings

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.