Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Hits New 12-Month High on Earnings Beat

Key Points

• Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) shares hit a new 52-week high of $43.76 following a strong earnings report, with an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.88, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.60.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.13, reflecting an annual yield of 1.4% and a dividend payout ratio of 78.79%.
• Wall Street analysts upgraded Astec Industries from a "buy" to a "strong-buy" rating, indicating increased confidence in the stock's future performance.

Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $43.76 and last traded at $38.09, with a volume of 24891 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $40.39.

The industrial products company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.28. Astec Industries had a net margin of 3.50% and a return on equity of 11.52%. The firm had revenue of $330.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $361.00 million.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. Astec Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Astec Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astec Industries

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASTE. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 98.8% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 361,390 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $12,450,000 after buying an additional 179,618 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Astec Industries by 22.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 819,913 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,247,000 after buying an additional 150,634 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Astec Industries during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,419,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Astec Industries in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,612,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Astec Industries by 188.2% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 148,351 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,111,000 after buying an additional 96,883 shares in the last quarter. 93.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astec Industries Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 2.71. The stock has a market cap of $988.47 million, a PE ratio of 21.59 and a beta of 1.43. The company's 50-day moving average price is $40.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.18.

Astec Industries Company Profile

Astec Industries, Inc designs, engineers, manufactures, and markets equipment and components used primarily in road building and related construction activities worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Infrastructure Solutions and Materials Solutions. The Infrastructure Solutions segment offers asphalt plants and related components, heaters, concrete dust control systems, asphalt pavers, vaporizers, concrete material handling systems, screeds, heat recovery units, paste back-fill plants, asphalt storage tanks, hot oil heaters, bagging plants, fuel storage tanks, industrial and asphalt burners and systems, custom batch plants, material transfer vehicles, soil stabilizing-reclaiming machinery, blower trucks and trailers, milling machines, soil remediation plants, wood chippers and grinders, pump trailers, concrete batch plants, control systems, liquid terminals, storage equipment and related parts, construction and retrofits, polymer plants, and concrete mixers, as well as engineering and environmental permitting services.