Two Sigma Investments LP Decreases Stock Position in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Two Sigma Investments LP trimmed its stake in shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) by 80.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,055 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP’s holdings in Kadant were worth $412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in Kadant in the fourth quarter valued at $464,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 121,686 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $41,980,000 after buying an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Kadant by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,132 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,460,000 after acquiring an additional 828 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new stake in Kadant during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,368,000. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in Kadant during the 4th quarter worth approximately $193,595,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Kadant Price Performance

KAI stock opened at $333.37 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a PE ratio of 35.17 and a beta of 1.26. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average price of $310.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $347.90. Kadant Inc. has a 12-month low of $269.75 and a 12-month high of $429.95.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $239.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.41 million. Kadant had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.59%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.38 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Kadant Inc. will post 9.97 EPS for the current year.

Kadant Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.44%.

Kadant announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on KAI shares. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Kadant from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kadant from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a report on Thursday, May 1st.

Kadant Company Profile

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.