Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) Shares Sold by Bank of America Corp DE

Bank of America Corp DE cut its position in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Free Report) by 40.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 60,897 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 41,932 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.27% of Astec Industries worth $2,046,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 650 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $128,000. Finally, Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $204,000. 93.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. 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 upped their target price on Astec Industries from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th.

Astec Industries Price Performance

ASTE stock traded up $0.43 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $40.06. 94,705 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 153,431. The company has a market cap of $916.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -500.69 and a beta of 1.40. The stock's 50 day moving average is $37.03 and its 200 day moving average is $35.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.46 and a 12-month high of $42.79.

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

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

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

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.