Bank of America Initiates Coverage on Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT)

Key Points

• Bank of America has initiated coverage on Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) with a rating of "neutral" and set a price target of $28.00, indicating a potential 6.46% upside from its previous close.
• Other research firms have varied ratings on the stock, with Truist Financial raising its price objective from $28.00 to $31.00, while the consensus rating remains a "Hold" with an average price target of $31.67.
• CEO Alan Yu sold 750,000 shares of Karat Packaging for a total of $20.25 million, which decreased his ownership stake by nearly 10.8%.

Bank of America started coverage on shares of Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT - Free Report) in a research note released on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $28.00 price objective on the stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Karat Packaging from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Karat Packaging from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $31.67.

Karat Packaging Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of KRT traded up $0.27 on Wednesday, hitting $25.62. 73,288 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 60,906. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $514.71 million, a P/E ratio of 16.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.11. The stock's 50 day moving average is $27.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.31. Karat Packaging has a 1 year low of $23.00 and a 1 year high of $33.89.

Karat Packaging Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. Karat Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 113.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Karat Packaging news, CEO Alan Yu sold 750,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total transaction of $20,250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,203,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at $167,502,735. This trade represents a 10.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 66.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its holdings in shares of Karat Packaging by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 18,041 shares of the company's stock valued at $508,000 after buying an additional 1,138 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Karat Packaging by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 330,961 shares of the company's stock worth $9,320,000 after buying an additional 10,617 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Karat Packaging by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 40,390 shares of the company's stock worth $1,137,000 after buying an additional 770 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new stake in shares of Karat Packaging during the 2nd quarter worth about $440,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 221.8% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,652 shares of the company's stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 10,788 shares during the last quarter. 25.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Karat Packaging Company Profile

Karat Packaging Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and distribution of single-use disposable products in plastic, paper, biopolymer-based, and other compostable forms used in various restaurant and foodservice settings. It provides food and take-out containers, bags, tableware, cups, lids, cutlery, straws, specialty beverage ingredients, equipment, gloves, and other products under the Karat Earth brand.