Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Kadant Inc $KAI

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group opened a new position in Kadant, buying 4,012 shares valued at about $1.144 million in the fourth quarter. Other institutional investors also increased or initiated stakes, and institutions now own 96.13% of the stock.
• Kadant reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.84 versus the $2.11 estimate and revenue of $281.51 million, up 17.9% year over year. The company also provided Q2 2026 and FY 2026 guidance above current expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share and authorized a $50 million share buyback. Meanwhile, analysts remain cautious overall, with a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $341.50.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kadant Inc (NYSE:KAI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,012 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,144,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kadant during the fourth quarter worth about $219,000. Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kadant during the fourth quarter worth about $654,000. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 22,853 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $6,514,000 after purchasing an additional 1,616 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 1,619.6% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 77,847 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $22,188,000 after purchasing an additional 73,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 2,703 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $770,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kadant Stock Performance

Shares of KAI stock opened at $321.89 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.70 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm's 50 day moving average is $313.74 and its 200 day moving average is $308.87. Kadant Inc has a 12 month low of $244.87 and a 12 month high of $369.97.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $281.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.95 million. Kadant had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 9.45%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. Kadant has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.880-2.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.330-12.680 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc will post 12.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Kadant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 16th. Kadant's payout ratio is presently 16.42%.

Kadant declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 21st that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to buy up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Kadant from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kadant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of Kadant in a report on Monday, May 4th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Kadant from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $303.00 target price on Kadant in a report on Friday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kadant presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $341.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kadant news, SVP Stacy D. Krause sold 1,227 shares of Kadant stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $334.17, for a total transaction of $410,026.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,363 shares of the company's stock, valued at $455,473.71. The trade was a 47.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Kadant Profile

Kadant Inc, headquartered in Westford, Massachusetts, is a global supplier of high‐value, critical components and engineered systems for the pulp and paper industry and other process industries. The company's product portfolio spans stock preparation technologies, refiners and pulpers, fluid handling systems, and web‐handling equipment designed to optimize the efficiency and quality of paper production. In addition to capital equipment, Kadant offers aftermarket services, including spare parts, maintenance programs and process optimization consulting, which together support long‐term customer productivity and reliability.

Originally part of a larger industrial conglomerate, Kadant was established as an independent public company in 1991.

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