Martinsville, Virginia based Hooker Furniture (HOFT), a furniture maker, reported a strong fourth quarter profit for its fiscal quarter. The company reported a $4.6 million profit, or 39 cents per share, for the quarter that ended on February 3. This was a huge improvement for the company, which reported a loss of $18.4 million during last year’s fourth quarter, or $1.52 per share. They did have a shortened, two month quarter last year, related to a shift in their fiscal year.
Due to a strong increase in daily sales, the company netted $82.3, up from the $49.1 million during the shortened two-month period last year. To help alleviate the comparison issue from last year to this year, the company made a point to say that sales went up strongly per shipping day for this year’s quarter.
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Stock investing heated up when the company its 39% annual profit jump, to $19.7 million. This amounted to $1.58 per share. Last year’s earnings were $14.1 million, or $1.18 per share. Traders are always quick to add stocks to their trading portfolio when they show strong signs of growth.
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After hours trade really gave the stock help following the announcement, and a down day in regular trade. The stock was up almost 8% after hours, to just under $25 per share. The one year target price, a commonly used stock research tool, is currently at $26 for the stock. This may suggest little room for capital gains from price increase. However, the 40 cent annual dividend yield the company currently offers may be more appealing for long-term stock trading strategies. Many people like to have income earning stocks with stable earnings as part of their personal stock portfolio.
Covered call trading strategies and covered call investing may be employed by some stock traders in light of the strong after-earnings surge. Some investors like to take advantage of the strong earnings announcements for investing in covered call investing.
Hooker Furniture has actually been trading at the upper range of its 52-week trade. Its low point of the last year was at $15.52. Its high point was $25.10. It currently sits just below that and seems well poised to reach a new 52-week stock trading high very soon. This would likely bring in new interest from momentum trading buyers.
The narrow trading range for the stock suggests a limited implied volatility. This suggests the stock may be a good stable pick for medium or long-term traders, but might not be a good fit for a high growth strategy. Someone looking for a stock that is going to rise sharply may not be enticed. However, the company’s strong growth in the last year could lead to a solid upward surge at some point and potentially increased volatility.
As the US economy picks up, potentially in late 2008, it is possible demand for the company’s furniture could pick up as well. This would definitely bode well for financial performance over the last half of the company’s 2008 fiscal year.
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[tags] Martinsville, Virginia, US, covered call investing, covered call strategies, implied volatility, investing in stock options, personal stock portfolio, poweroptions, stock help, stock investing, stock market help, stock market investment strategies, stock options, stock research, stock trading [/tags]