Wasatch Advisors LP Cuts Stake in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Wasatch Advisors LP lessened its holdings in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) by 4.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,149,512 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 50,541 shares during the quarter. Kadant accounts for 1.9% of Wasatch Advisors LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Wasatch Advisors LP owned 0.10% of Kadant worth $388,535,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Kadant during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kadant in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kadant in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Park Place Capital Corp increased its stake in Kadant by 68.6% in the 3rd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 204 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kadant during the third quarter valued at approximately $74,000. 96.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kadant Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KAI opened at $412.79 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $4.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.25 and a beta of 1.21. Kadant Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.51 and a 12 month high of $429.95. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $354.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $321.01.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.41. Kadant had a return on equity of 15.10% and a net margin of 11.12%. The business had revenue of $271.61 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $266.38 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.69 EPS. Kadant’s quarterly revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 10.11 EPS for the current year.

Kadant Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 9th. Kadant’s payout ratio is 13.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $360.00 target price on shares of Kadant in a report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kadant news, Director Thomas C. Leonard sold 152 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $398.21, for a total transaction of $60,527.92. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,692,392.50. This represents a 3.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Fredrik H. Westerhout sold 600 shares of Kadant stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $397.25, for a total value of $238,350.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,437 shares in the company, valued at $570,848.25. This represents a 29.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,052 shares of company stock valued at $1,091,455 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Kadant

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.