Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $38.85 and last traded at $38.8050, with a volume of 36997 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.26.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Astec Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Astec Industries from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Astec Industries in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Astec Industries Stock Down 1.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $892.72 million, a PE ratio of 45.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 2.52. The company’s 50-day moving average is $42.75 and its 200 day moving average is $50.66.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $408.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $405.50 million. Astec Industries had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 1.26%.During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Astec Industries, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current year.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Astec Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 61.18%.

Institutional Trading of Astec Industries

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ASTE. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Astec Industries in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $212,732,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,075,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries in the 2nd quarter worth $2,997,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the second quarter worth $2,315,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in Astec Industries in the first quarter valued at about $2,976,000. Institutional investors own 93.16% of the company’s stock.

About Astec Industries

Astec Industries, Inc (NASDAQ: ASTE) designs, engineers, manufactures and services equipment used in the construction of infrastructure and the processing of aggregates. Its products support road building, asphalt production, concrete production, aggregate processing and related industrial applications.

The company’s product portfolio includes asphalt plants and related equipment, concrete plants, crushers, screens, feeders, material-handling systems, thermal-processing equipment and road-building machinery.