Empowered Funds LLC Takes Position in Kennametal Inc. $KMT

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC has acquired a new position in Kennametal Inc. with 329,055 shares valued at approximately $7 million, increasing its stake to 0.43% as reported to the SEC.
• Several institutional investors, including Victory Capital Management Inc. and American Century Companies Inc., have also increased their holdings in Kennametal, indicating growing interest in the stock.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Kennametal, with a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a price target of $24, while the stock recently reported earnings that missed estimates.

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 329,055 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $7,009,000. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.43% of Kennametal at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Kennametal by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,307 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $986,000 after purchasing an additional 2,013 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Kennametal during the 1st quarter valued at $623,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kennametal during the 1st quarter valued at $11,801,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Kennametal during the 1st quarter valued at $3,412,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Kennametal by 17.7% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 30,474 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $649,000 after purchasing an additional 4,578 shares during the last quarter.

Kennametal Price Performance

Kennametal stock traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $20.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 156,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,058,818. Kennametal Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.30 and a 52 week high of $32.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.46, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $22.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.66. The stock has a market cap of $1.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.44.

Kennametal (NYSE:KMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.06). Kennametal had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 8.09%. The business had revenue of $516.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $527.52 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. The business's revenue was down 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Kennametal Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Kennametal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. Kennametal's payout ratio is currently 66.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMT has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group raised Kennametal from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $19.00 to $21.00 in a report on Friday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Kennametal from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised Kennametal to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $24.00 price objective (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Kennametal in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kennametal has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Kennametal Profile

Kennametal Inc engages in development and application of tungsten carbides, ceramics, and super-hard materials and solutions for use in metal cutting and extreme wear applications to enable customers work against corrosion and high temperatures conditions worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Metal Cutting and Infrastructure.