HNI Co. (NYSE:HNI) Short Interest Update

HNI Co. (NYSE:HNI) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 723,900 shares, a growth of 15.3% from the September 30th total of 627,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 242,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at HNI

In related news, insider Brian Scott Smith sold 2,284 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $123,336.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $642,708. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Mary A. Bell sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.85, for a total value of $259,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 74,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,857,691.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian Scott Smith sold 2,284 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $123,336.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,902 shares in the company, valued at $642,708. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 110,582 shares of company stock worth $5,597,281 over the last quarter. Insiders own 3.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HNI

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in HNI in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in HNI during the second quarter valued at $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of HNI by 51.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 670 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of HNI by 4,746.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,181 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 2,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of HNI during the 3rd quarter worth about $230,000. 75.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on HNI. StockNews.com downgraded HNI from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, October 13th. Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of HNI from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th.

HNI Stock Performance

HNI stock traded down $3.51 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $48.32. The stock had a trading volume of 98,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 244,973. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.20. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.44. The stock has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a PE ratio of 35.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.84. HNI has a 52-week low of $33.21 and a 52-week high of $56.13.

HNI Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 23rd. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. HNI’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.78%.

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.