Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Raises Holdings in Karat Packaging Inc. $KRT

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) by 130.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,552 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 32,552 shares during the quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. owned approximately 0.29% of Karat Packaging worth $1,447,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ranger Investment Management L.P. grew its holdings in Karat Packaging by 105.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ranger Investment Management L.P. now owns 320,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,027,000 after acquiring an additional 164,716 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Karat Packaging in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,312,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 92.2% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 171,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,819,000 after purchasing an additional 82,091 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 53.6% during the second quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 229,143 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,444,000 after purchasing an additional 80,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HBK Investments L P purchased a new position in Karat Packaging during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,971,000. 25.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Karat Packaging Trading Down 0.2%

Karat Packaging stock opened at $24.95 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $22.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 2.14. Karat Packaging Inc. has a one year low of $20.61 and a one year high of $33.89. The stock has a market cap of $501.50 million, a PE ratio of 16.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.09.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37. The business had revenue of $124.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $124.09 million. Karat Packaging had a return on equity of 18.98% and a net margin of 6.67%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Karat Packaging Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.2%. Karat Packaging’s payout ratio is 120.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on KRT. Weiss Ratings lowered Karat Packaging from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America lowered Karat Packaging from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $27.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Karat Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Karat Packaging from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $26.50.

Karat Packaging Company Profile

Karat Packaging Technologies, Inc (NASDAQ: KRT) is a U.S.-based provider of premium packaging solutions for consumer goods and industrial products. The company specializes in the design, manufacture and delivery of high-quality litho-laminated folding cartons, tubes and flexible packaging. Karat Packaging operates an integrated production model that combines prepress, printing, converting and finishing capabilities to support the branding and shelf-appeal needs of its customers.

The company serves a diverse range of end markets, including food and beverage, confectionery, health and beauty, pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals and promotional packaging.