Ameriprise Financial Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. trimmed its position in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Free Report) by 20.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 145,902 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 37,823 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 0.64% of Astec Industries worth $4,902,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Astec Industries by 802.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 731 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Astec Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 4th quarter worth $86,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Astec Industries during the fourth quarter worth $128,000. Finally, Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Astec Industries during the fourth quarter worth $204,000. 93.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on ASTE shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Astec Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Astec Industries from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

Astec Industries Trading Up 3.0%

Astec Industries stock traded up $1.17 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $39.92. The company had a trading volume of 132,291 shares, compared to its average volume of 152,713. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.46 and a 12-month high of $42.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 2.47. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $36.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $912.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -498.94 and a beta of 1.40.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $329.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $320.40 million. Astec Industries had a negative net margin of 0.15% and a positive return on equity of 7.69%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.34 EPS.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. Astec Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.79%.

Astec Industries 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.