Sheets Smith Wealth Management Raises Holdings in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Sheets Smith Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,769 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Sheets Smith Wealth Management’s holdings in Kadant were worth $496,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kadant by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 658,401 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $148,502,000 after acquiring an additional 4,529 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Kadant during the third quarter worth approximately $110,849,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Kadant by 0.6% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 142,393 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,117,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. abrdn plc increased its position in shares of Kadant by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 118,583 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,240,000 after buying an additional 16,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kadant by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 114,155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,748,000 after buying an additional 3,503 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Kadant

In related news, Director Thomas C. Leonard sold 217 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.81, for a total value of $70,266.77. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,587,814.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Thomas C. Leonard sold 217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.81, for a total transaction of $70,266.77. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,587,814.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Stacy D. Krause sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.00, for a total transaction of $228,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $288,087. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,798 shares of company stock worth $2,899,004 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Kadant Price Performance

Shares of KAI traded up $9.41 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $281.87. 52,314 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 96,232. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $307.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $283.24. Kadant Inc. has a 12-month low of $186.99 and a 12-month high of $354.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 2.05. The company has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.38 and a beta of 1.30.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $248.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $245.56 million. Kadant had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 15.88%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.40 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Kadant Inc. will post 10 earnings per share for the current year.

Kadant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. This is a positive change from Kadant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KAI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Kadant in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of Kadant in a research note on Monday, April 29th.

Kadant 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.