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Fuller H B (FUL): analysis traps
Where its figures could mislead a reader, and what to check before taking them at face value · Data: Q3 FY26, to Aug 29, 2026, filed Sep 24, 2026; rules v1.1
Fuller H B (FUL): 0 rules of 10 triggered on the filings to Aug 29, 2026. 1 to review; 2 with insufficient data; 2 not applicable. Each is a question to verify, with the normal explanation that would produce the same figures.
Check these first
Low P/E at a cyclical peak = undervalued To review · confidence medium
Net income of $198M is at a high against a median of $145M over eight years; at 13.8× the market is not pricing it as cheap, but a multiple on this year's profit still understates the mid-cycle one (18.9×).
Every rule
A01 FCF growth = the business improved Not triggered confidence high
Free cash flow did not rise ($163M → $121M): the trap does not arise.
The figures and how they are read
| Fiscal year before | FY24 |
| Fiscal year | FY25 |
| Operating cash flow, year before | $302M |
| Operating cash flow | $263M |
| Capex, year before | $139M |
| Capex | $142M |
| Free cash flow, year before | $163M |
| Free cash flow | $121M |
| Change in FCF | −$42M |
| Change in capex | $3M |
| Working capital: change in its cash contribution | $7M |
FCF = operating cash flow − cash capex; ΔFCF = ΔOCF − ΔCapEx; the working-capital part is the change in the cash-bridge items (receivables, inventory, payables, accruals), with the sign of the cash flow statement
Source: FY25 (cash flow statement, fiscal year) · FY24 (cash flow statement, fiscal year before)
A07 Stock compensation added back = no economic cost Not triggered confidence high
Stock compensation is 0.6% of revenue: small enough that adding it back changes little.
The figures and how they are read
| Fiscal year | FY25 |
| Stock compensation | $22M |
| Revenue | $3.5B |
| SBC / revenue | +0.6% |
| Buybacks | $61M |
| Buybacks / SBC | 2.8 |
| Diluted shares, year before | 56.6M shares |
| Diluted shares | 55.4M shares |
| Diluted shares: change | -2.2% |
SBC / revenue from the cash flow statement's add-back; the diluted weighted share count year over year; buybacks from the financing section
Source: FY25 (stock compensation, buybacks and the diluted share count, fiscal year)
B02 Receivables growing = future cash is certain Not triggered confidence medium
Receivables grew 15% against revenue 5% in Q3 FY26; DSO 62 against a median of 57: collections are keeping pace with sales.
The figures and how they are read
| Quarter | Q3 FY26 |
| Revenue, year over year | +5.2% |
| Receivables, year over year | +15.0% |
| Quarter before | Q2 FY26 |
| Revenue y/y, quarter before | +5.8% |
| Receivables y/y, quarter before | +6.6% |
| Days sales outstanding | 61.6 |
| DSO, median of eight quarters | 57.4 |
| Receivables | $648M |
| Revenue | $938M |
receivables and revenue against the same quarter a year earlier; DSO = receivables / quarterly revenue × days, against the median of the eight quarters before
Source: Q3 FY26 (receivables and revenue) · Q3 FY25 (the same quarter a year earlier)
B08 Adjusted profit = economic profit Insufficient data
no reconciliation table read from the releases yet and fewer than three quarters with both an adjusted and a GAAP EPS
C02 Low net debt = no refinancing risk Not triggered confidence medium
$47M comes due within a year, 4.2× covered by cash and investments of $97M plus $100M of free cash flow.
The figures and how they are read
| Cash and investments | $97M |
| Debt | $2.0B |
| Net debt | $1.9B |
| Due within a year | $47M |
| Read from | the debt maturity table |
| Free cash flow, twelve months | $100M |
| Cash plus free cash flow | $197M |
| Coverage of what is due | 4.2 |
| Due in the second year | $354M |
| Balance sheet date | 2026-08-29 |
due within a year from the maturity table (else the current portion of debt), against cash and investments plus free cash flow over the last twelve months (zero if negative); no credit lines assumed
Source: FY25 (debt maturities, cash and investments)
D03 EPS growth = profit growth Not triggered confidence high
EPS rose 25% and net income rose 21% in Q3 FY25; the share count fell 2.6%: EPS growth follows profit growth.
The figures and how they are read
| Quarter | Q3 FY25 |
| Quarter before | Q3 FY24 |
| EPS, year before | $0.98 |
| EPS | $1.22 |
| Net income, year before | $55M |
| Net income | $67M |
| Diluted shares, year before | 56.6M shares |
| Diluted shares | 55.2M shares |
| EPS growth | +24.7% |
| Net income growth | +21.3% |
| Diluted shares: change | -2.6% |
| eps from profit | $0.21 |
| eps from share count | $0.03 |
EPS and net income against the same quarter a year earlier; the EPS bridge attributes the change to profit first, then to the share count (the order is fixed and disclosed)
Source: Q3 FY25 (net income, diluted shares, EPS) · Q3 FY24 (the same quarter a year earlier)
E02 Low P/E at a cyclical peak = undervalued To review confidence medium
Net income of $198M is at a high against a median of $145M over eight years; at 13.8× the market is not pricing it as cheap, but a multiple on this year's profit still understates the mid-cycle one (18.9×).
The figures and how they are read
| market value | $2.7B |
| net income ttm | $198M |
| pe ttm | 13.80 |
| net income median fy | $145M |
| pe mid cycle | 18.90 |
| net income peak fy | $180M |
| years | FY19 / 131.0; FY20 / 124.0; FY21 / 161.0; FY22 / 180.0; FY23 / 145.0; FY24 / 130.0; FY24 / 130.0; FY25 / 152.0 |
| down years in window | 4 |
P/E on the trailing twelve months' net income against the P/E on the median net income of the last eight fiscal years (a mid-cycle stand-in); 'at a peak' = this year's profit at or above 90% of the best year and at least 1.3× the median
Source: Q3 FY26 (net income, trailing twelve months)
What would show the trap does not apply
- Profit holds at this level through the next two years (the eight-year peak was a new base, not a top)
- The industry's capacity and prices stay where they are rather than reverting
Look again: next filing.
E07 A precise DCF value = the true value Insufficient data
no DCF in the valuation research for this company
J06 A bank's low P/E and high profit = safe Not applicable
not a bank
J08 A REIT's low net income = the dividend is unsafe Not applicable
not a REIT
What the statuses mean
Triggered: the filings show the pattern; read the normal explanations and the missing evidence before concluding anything. To review: one quarter or a weak signal; a reader's judgement, not a pattern. Not triggered: the pattern is absent on these figures. Insufficient data: the filings read so far do not hold what the rule needs; this is not a clean bill. Not applicable: the rule is not meant for this kind of company (a bank's working capital, a loss-making quarter's EPS growth). Out of date: the latest filing is more than fifteen months old.
Severity is what the pattern could mean for cash, value or solvency; confidence is how reliable the inputs and the reading are. The two are kept apart.
Record a view
A reader's judgement, grounds, what would change it and the next review; kept in the browser (needs JavaScript).
Every rule and the companies it triggers on → Fuller H B: cash flow → Earnings quality score →
Each rule reads the company's own filings by a fixed formula and says what would explain the same figures innocently. A triggered rule is a question to verify, not a finding of manipulation, and not a view on the stock. Missing data is shown as missing, never as clear. Not investment advice.