Kadant (NYSE:KAI) Sets New 52-Week High at $262.73

Shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $262.73 and last traded at $261.04, with a volume of 3111 shares. The stock had previously closed at $260.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on KAI. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Kadant in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $243.00 target price on shares of Kadant in a research report on Friday, July 28th.

Kadant Trading Up 0.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.56 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a fifty day moving average of $227.72 and a 200-day moving average of $215.80.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.45. Kadant had a return on equity of 16.76% and a net margin of 12.06%. The business had revenue of $244.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.80 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 9.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kadant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 12th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 11th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.84%.

Insider Activity

In other Kadant news, VP Dara F. Mitchell sold 1,307 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.73, for a total transaction of $287,187.11. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,622.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Dara F. Mitchell sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.22, for a total transaction of $87,288.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,567.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Dara F. Mitchell sold 1,307 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.73, for a total transaction of $287,187.11. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,622.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,170 shares of company stock worth $1,798,693 in the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KAI. Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Kadant by 70.4% during the 1st quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kadant during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Kadant by 62.2% in the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Kadant in the 1st quarter worth approximately $101,000. Finally, Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kadant by 63.1% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 734 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $153,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kadant Company Profile

Kadant Inc supplies technologies and engineered systems worldwide. It operates through three segments: Flow Control, Industrial Processing, and Material Handling. The Flow Control segment develops, manufactures, and markets fluid-handling systems and equipment, such as rotary joints, syphons, turbulator bars, expansion joints, and engineered steam and condensate systems; and doctoring, cleaning, and filtration systems and related consumables, consisting of doctor systems and holders, doctor blades, shower and fabric-conditioning systems, formation systems, and water-filtration systems.