Bank of America Corp DE Boosts Stock Position in Astec Industries, Inc. $ASTE

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Astec Industries stake by 64.3% in the first quarter, holding 93,365 shares worth approximately $5.0 million. Institutional investors collectively own 93.16% of ASTE.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: recent reports included downgrades to “hold” and “strong sell,” though the overall MarketBeat consensus remains “Moderate Buy.”
• Astec’s latest quarterly earnings missed expectations, with EPS of $0.94 versus the $1.04 estimate, while revenue slightly exceeded forecasts at $408.1 million. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, representing a 1.2% annualized yield.

Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Free Report) by 64.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 93,365 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 36,526 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.41% of Astec Industries worth $5,027,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ASTE. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Astec Industries in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Astec Industries by 8,994.1% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,546 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 1,529 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Astec Industries by 412.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,212 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Astec Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $127,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Astec Industries in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $210,000. 93.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Astec Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Astec Industries in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Astec Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Astec Industries presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Astec Industries Price Performance

Astec Industries stock opened at $44.15 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.05. The stock has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.36. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.47 and a 12-month high of $65.69.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.10). Astec Industries had a net margin of 1.26% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The business had revenue of $408.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $405.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Astec Industries, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Astec Industries's payout ratio is 61.18%.

About Astec Industries

Astec Industries, Inc is a designer and manufacturer of specialized equipment for infrastructure-related markets. Headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the company develops, engineers and produces machinery for asphalt road-building, aggregate processing, concrete production, underground mining, landscaping and utility installation. Astec's product portfolio includes asphalt plants, portable crushers, conveyors, screening plants, mixers, continuous miners and related support equipment.

Organized into multiple operating segments—Roadbuilding; Aggregate & Mining; Energy; and Pavement Preservation & Maintenance—Astec Industries serves contractors and municipalities that build and maintain transportation, energy and utility networks.

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