Kadant (NYSE:KAI) Updates FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 10.500-10.750 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 10.250. The company issued revenue guidance of $1.2 billion-$1.2 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $1.2 billion. Kadant also updated its Q1 2026 guidance to 1.780-1.880 EPS.

Kadant Trading Down 3.9%

NYSE:KAI traded down $12.96 on Wednesday, reaching $320.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 176,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,347. Kadant has a 1-year low of $244.87 and a 1-year high of $398.69. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $311.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $304.42. The firm has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a PE ratio of 37.06 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.45.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The industrial products company reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.08. Kadant had a return on equity of 11.97% and a net margin of 9.96%.The company had revenue of $286.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.43 million. Kadant has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.780-1.880 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.750 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kadant will post 9.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on KAI shares. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price target on shares of Kadant in a report on Wednesday. DA Davidson set a $295.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kadant in a report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $337.50.

Insider Activity at Kadant

In other Kadant news, Director Erin L. Russell sold 1,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.36, for a total transaction of $405,186.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $865,715.76. This represents a 31.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Kadant

Here are the key news stories impacting Kadant this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat — Kadant reported EPS of $2.27 vs. consensus $2.19 and revenue of $286.2M vs. ~$274.4M expected, with improved margins and healthy ROE. These results point to underlying demand strength and margin recovery. Kadant Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Record revenue and margin improvement highlighted by the company/coverage — commentary and summaries emphasize an 11% y/y revenue gain and margin progress, reinforcing the quality of the quarter. Kadant Posts Record Q4 Revenue and Improves Margins
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support — Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating with a $380 price target, signaling continued analyst conviction about upside from current levels. Benzinga Analyst Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets summarized the quarter and company release; investors can review the full press release and coverage for segment-level detail and any forward-looking commentary. Kadant’s (NYSE:KAI) Q4 CY2025: Strong Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Shares declined today despite the beat — likely drivers include profit-taking after recent strength, elevated valuation (PE ~37), and investors awaiting management’s FY26 outlook or other forward guidance details. Higher trading volume suggests some repositioning even though the quarter was solid. (Market data and intraday movement referenced from market summaries.)

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kadant

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Kadant by 3.6% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 984,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $312,432,000 after buying an additional 34,561 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Kadant by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 456,721 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,175,000 after acquiring an additional 15,446 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Kadant by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 279,029 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $79,537,000 after purchasing an additional 10,249 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Kadant by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 190,951 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $54,426,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in Kadant by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 151,840 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,277,000 after purchasing an additional 14,476 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

About Kadant

Kadant Inc, headquartered in Westford, Massachusetts, is a global supplier of high‐value, critical components and engineered systems for the pulp and paper industry and other process industries. The company’s product portfolio spans stock preparation technologies, refiners and pulpers, fluid handling systems, and web‐handling equipment designed to optimize the efficiency and quality of paper production. In addition to capital equipment, Kadant offers aftermarket services, including spare parts, maintenance programs and process optimization consulting, which together support long‐term customer productivity and reliability.

Originally part of a larger industrial conglomerate, Kadant was established as an independent public company in 1991.