Strs Ohio Raises Stake in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT)

Strs Ohio increased its stake in shares of Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) by 29.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 18,700 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Karat Packaging were worth $464,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Denali Advisors LLC lifted its position in Karat Packaging by 167.8% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 31,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $785,000 after acquiring an additional 19,800 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Karat Packaging during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Karat Packaging during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Ellsworth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Karat Packaging by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 17,901 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 531 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in Karat Packaging by 69.5% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 17,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 7,336 shares in the last quarter. 25.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target (up from $30.00) on shares of Karat Packaging in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Karat Packaging from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th.

Karat Packaging Stock Performance

Shares of KRT opened at $27.31 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $28.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.81. Karat Packaging Inc. has a 52-week low of $13.43 and a 52-week high of $30.94. The firm has a market cap of $545.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.86 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 3.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.16). Karat Packaging had a return on equity of 22.54% and a net margin of 8.00%. The business had revenue of $95.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.51 million. Analysts forecast that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Karat Packaging Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were paid a $0.30 dividend. This is a boost from Karat Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.39%. Karat Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.07%.

Karat Packaging Profile

Karat Packaging Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and distribution of single-use disposable products in plastic, paper, biopolymer-based, and other compostable forms used in various restaurant and foodservice settings. It provides food and take-out containers, bags, tableware, cups, lids, cutlery, straws, specialty beverage ingredients, equipment, gloves, and other products under the Karat Earth brand.