MQS Management LLC Buys New Position in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 848 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $278,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kadant by 58.2% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Kadant by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in Kadant by 7.1% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 855 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $280,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its stake in Kadant by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 1,769 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kadant during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kadant Stock Performance

Shares of Kadant stock traded up $7.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $353.46. 6,008 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 88,476. Kadant Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.99 and a 12-month high of $355.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.98 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $295.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $297.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.42. Kadant had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 11.53%. The company had revenue of $248.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $245.56 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 10.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kadant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 11th. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Kadant in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $360.00 target price on shares of Kadant in a report on Wednesday, June 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Erin L. Russell sold 1,112 shares of Kadant stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.25, for a total value of $310,526.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,061,708.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.