Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Sets New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Astec Industries reached a new 52-week high with shares trading at $49.99, a rise from a previous close of $48.56, with a trading volume of 13,680 shares.
• The company has been rated a "hold" by analysts, with an average target price of $41.00, despite reporting earnings per share of $0.88, which beat estimates.
• Astec Industries announced a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.1%, with a payout ratio of 26.13%.

Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $49.64 and last traded at $49.99, with a volume of 13680 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $48.56.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Astec Industries in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, Astec Industries presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $41.00.

Astec Industries Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.87 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 2.71. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $45.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.52.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $330.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $361.00 million. Astec Industries had a return on equity of 11.52% and a net margin of 3.50%.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Astec Industries's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Barend Snyman sold 2,498 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.22, for a total value of $117,955.56. Following the transaction, the insider owned 15,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $734,695.98. This represents a 13.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Astec Industries

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Astec Industries in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Astec Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Astec Industries by 66.4% in the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,165 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp increased its stake in Astec Industries by 30.0% in the second quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 1,300 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC increased its stake in Astec Industries by 264.6% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,483 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 1,802 shares during the period. 93.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Astec Industries

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.

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