Quality Investor

H.B. Fuller Company

Rank #352Capital Return

FUL · NYSE · Basic Materials

H.B. Fuller Company (FUL) — Rank #352 by gross profitability (GP/assets 0.20) · ROE 7.3% · Piotroski F-Score 5 / 9.

As-of 2026-09-15 · CIK 0000039368 · all metrics point-in-time as of the filing date.

About

H.B.

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Fuller Company, together with its subsidiaries, formulates, manufactures, and markets adhesives, sealants, coatings, polymers, tapes, encapsulants, additives, and other specialty chemical products. It operates through three segments: Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives; Engineering Adhesives; and Building Adhesive Solutions. The Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives segment produces and supplies specialty industrial adhesives, such as thermoplastic, thermoset, reactive, water-based, and solvent-based products for applications in various markets, including packaging, converting, nonwoven and hygiene, and medical and beauty. The Engineering Adhesives segment produces and supplies high performance industrial adhesives comprising reactive, light cure, two-part liquids, polyurethane, silicone, film, and fast cure products to the durable assembly, performance wood and textile, transportation, electronics, clean energy, aerospace and defense, appliance, heavy machinery, and insulating glass markets. The Construction Adhesives segment provides products used for commercial roofing, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning and insulation applications, as well as caulks and sealants for the consumer market and professional trade. The company sells its products directly to customers, as well as through distributors and retailers in North America, Latin America, Europe, India, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. H.B.

Fuller Company was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Industry
Specialty Chemicals
Sector
Basic Materials
State
MN
Filer Category
Large accelerated filer
Fiscal Year End
November 28

Price History

FUL-19.0% · -4.1% CAGRSPY+80.5% · +12.5% CAGR

Company Snapshot

P/E and reverse DCF are the primary valuation lenses at this stage.

Market Cap

$2.71B

P/E (annual)

18.4

P/S (annual)

0.8

P/B

1.3

P/OCF (annual)

10.3

Shareholder Yield

-4.7%

Employees

7,100

Industry

Specialty Chemicals

Exchange

NYSE

Signal Flags

1 green1 yellow
Sequential beat (rev + EPS)Both revenue and EPS exceeded prior quarter — 2-quarter streak
Dilution above 2%Annual share count increase exceeds 2%. May be acceptable for high-growth companies funding talent via stock compensation

Quality Profile

Profitability

1/1 pass
GP / assets
0.20
Return on equity
7.3%
Gross margin trend
PASS

Safety

1/1 pass
Balance-sheet safety
PASS
Debt / equity
1.56
Current ratio
1.80×
Net cash
-$1.96B

Cash Flow

2/3 pass
Positive FCF
PASS
Cash-backed earnings
WARN
Accruals healthy
PASS
SBC / revenue
0.6%

Growth

1/2 pass
Revenue growth
14.2%
Piotroski F-Score
5 / 9
Share dilution
6.5%

Terry Smith quality gate

Passes 0/5 Terry Smith thresholds

3 of 5 thresholds not computable from filed data.

What Growth Is Priced In

Implied revenue growth (10Y)

9.6%

incredible deal

The annual FCF growth rate today's price requires over a 10-year horizon (discount rate 10%, terminal growth 2.5%).

Dilution drag: 6.5% — per-share value needs a total required return of 16.1% once share-count change is priced in.

vs. own 6-year median revenue growth: 19.8%

within its own history

Cost-of-equity sensitivity (implied growth at different discount rates)

r = 8%

5.2%

r = 10% (base)

9.6%

r = 12%

13.5%

Net debt / market cap: 70.1%— material leverage inflates the implied growth read.

Base FCF: $121.2M3Y mean FCF: $192.4M

Valuation History

Current multiple vs historical range at each filing date. Band spans 25th-75th percentile.

P / E

Price / diluted EPS

24.2xExpensive
14.2xmed 20.9x40.6x

P / S

Price / revenue per share

1.2xExpensive
0.8xmed 1.0x1.2x

P / B

Price / book value per share

2.4xExpensive
2.0xmed 2.2x2.6x

P / GP

Price / gross profit per share

4.6xExpensive
2.9xmed 3.8x4.6x

P / FCF

Price / free cash flow per share

33.3xExpensive
11.2xmed 15.6x33.3x

FCF yield, shareholder yield, and buyback activity are the primary reads at this stage.

Profitability

Gross profitability (GP / assets)

0.20

Primary signal (Novy-Marx).

39th pctl of 34 SIC 28 peers

Return on equity

7.3%

Gross margin

31.1%

24th pctl of 34 SIC 28 peers

Revenue growth (YoY)

14.2%

Gross margin improving

Margin trend vs prior year.

PASS

Operating Leverage

2018201920202021
Revenue vs COGS
Revenue vs OpEx
Op. Income vs Revenue

Growth

Revenue CAGR (3Y)

Revenue CAGR (5Y)

4.5%

Earnings CAGR (3Y)

FCF CAGR (3Y)

Anti-fragile safety

Balance-sheet safety

Composite anti-fragile check.

PASS

Debt / equity

1.56

7th pctl of 31 SIC 28 peers (best = lowest)

Current ratio

1.80×

24th pctl of 34 SIC 28 peers

Quick ratio

0.95×

Net cash

-$1.96B

Cash & equivalents minus total debt.

Cash-flow health

Free cash flow

$121.22M

Operating cash flow minus capex.

Positive free cash flow

PASS

FCF / net income

-0.20

Cash-backing of earnings.

FCF/NI divergence

Unfavorable divergence (yellow flag).

WARN

Accruals healthy

Cash-backed earnings.

PASS

SBC / revenue

0.6%

Stock-based comp intensity.

Dividend safety

Composite score

3.5 / 5

Good
Payout ratio
33.1%4/5 Strong
FCF coverage
2.41×4/5 Strong
Dividend growth streak
10 yr5/5 Strong
Balance-sheet health
D/E 1.56 · IC N/A1/5 Weak

Piotroski F-Score

F-Score

5 / 9

Fundamental-strength score (0-9).

Lifecycle Phase History

20162021
Hypergrowth
Value
Capital Return