Astec Industries, Inc. (ASTE) – What Are Researchers Saying About This Stock?

Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) has earned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the five research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $52.00.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Astec Industries from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Astec Industries in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, Freedom Broker cut their price target on shares of Astec Industries from $60.00 to $52.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astec Industries

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASTE. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Astec Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at $212,732,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Astec Industries by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,433,501 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $77,176,000 after purchasing an additional 22,154 shares during the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Astec Industries during the 2nd quarter worth about $14,783,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Astec Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at about $13,538,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Astec Industries by 105.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 301,598 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,136,000 after buying an additional 154,802 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.16% of the company’s stock.

Astec Industries Trading Up 5.3%

Astec Industries stock traded up $1.89 during trading on Monday, reaching $37.59. 232,182 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 224,816. Astec Industries has a 52-week low of $35.05 and a 52-week high of $65.69. The company has a market capitalization of $865.62 million, a P/E ratio of 75.19, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $50.38.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.48). The company had revenue of $352.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $375.47 million. Astec Industries had a return on equity of 8.60% and a net margin of 0.74%. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Astec Industries will post 3.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Investors of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. Astec Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 104.00%.

About Astec Industries

Astec Industries, Inc (NASDAQ: ASTE) designs, engineers and manufactures equipment used in the construction of roads, bridges and other infrastructure. The company serves businesses involved in the production and processing of aggregates, asphalt, concrete and other construction materials.

Its product portfolio includes asphalt plants and related equipment, concrete production systems, aggregate crushing, screening and material-handling equipment, wood-processing equipment, and machinery used in road construction and rehabilitation.