Zhang Financial LLC Cuts Position in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Zhang Financial LLC lessened its holdings in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,091 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 165 shares during the quarter. Zhang Financial LLC’s holdings in Kadant were worth $1,715,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Kadant by 25.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,218,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $420,292,000 after purchasing an additional 243,267 shares during the period. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in Kadant in the fourth quarter worth about $193,595,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 156,358 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,985,000 after buying an additional 26,067 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 154,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,289,000 after buying an additional 8,030 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Kadant during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,529,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Kadant Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of Kadant stock opened at $329.76 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.79 and a beta of 1.26. The company’s 50 day moving average is $311.76 and its 200 day moving average is $347.68. Kadant Inc. has a twelve month low of $276.62 and a twelve month high of $429.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $239.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.41 million. Kadant had a net margin of 10.59% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 9.97 EPS for the current year.

Kadant declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Kadant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.41%. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on KAI. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Kadant from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Kadant in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kadant from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th.

Kadant Company Profile

Kadant Inc supplies technologies and engineered systems worldwide. It operates in 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, cleaning shower and fabric-conditioning systems, forming systems and wear surfaces, and water-filtration systems.