Hooker Furnishings Co. (NASDAQ:HOFT) Short Interest Update

Hooker Furnishings Co. (NASDAQ:HOFT) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 163,900 shares, a drop of 12.9% from the December 15th total of 188,100 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 33,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Paulette Garafalo sold 2,489 shares of Hooker Furnishings stock in a transaction 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hooker Furnishings

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Hooker Furnishings by 107.5% during the third 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 last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 270.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 15,463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 11,288 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Hooker Furnishings by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 241,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,364,000 after acquiring an additional 2,493 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Hooker Furnishings by 4.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 172,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,116,000 after acquiring an additional 8,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Hooker Furnishings by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 44,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $796,000 after acquiring an additional 3,827 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Hooker Furnishings from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th.

Hooker Furnishings Stock Up 0.5 %

HOFT stock traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $13.25. 19,497 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 54,181. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $15.93 and its 200-day moving average is $15.89. Hooker Furnishings has a 12 month low of $12.74 and a 12 month high of $25.80. The company has a market cap of $141.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.56 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

Hooker Furnishings Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Hooker Furnishings’s dividend payout ratio is presently -101.10%.

Hooker Furnishings Company 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.