Northern Trust Corp Buys 10,972 Shares of Kadant Inc $KAI

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Kadant Inc by 7.1%, holding 165,438 shares valued at approximately $55.74 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• In recent analyst ratings, DA Davidson raised their price target for Kadant from $275 to $300, while Barrington Research set a higher target of $380, reflecting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Kadant's board approved a $50 million stock buyback program, indicating confidence in the company’s valuation amid plans for future EPS guidance of 2.130-2.230 for Q3 2025.

Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Kadant Inc (NYSE:KAI - Free Report) by 7.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 165,438 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,972 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 1.40% of Kadant worth $55,738,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kadant by 9.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,332,583 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $448,961,000 after acquiring an additional 114,310 shares in the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kadant by 97.9% during the first quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 221,209 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $74,528,000 after acquiring an additional 109,439 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Kadant by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 156,358 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $53,985,000 after acquiring an additional 26,067 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kadant by 4.0% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 126,606 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $42,655,000 after acquiring an additional 4,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kadant by 1.1% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 115,447 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $38,895,000 after acquiring an additional 1,240 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KAI shares. DA Davidson upped their target price on Kadant from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kadant from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kadant currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $340.00.

Kadant Stock Performance

NYSE:KAI traded down $6.82 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $323.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 91,259 shares, compared to its average volume of 102,812. Kadant Inc has a 12-month low of $281.30 and a 12-month high of $429.95. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $331.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $329.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market cap of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.01 and a beta of 1.25.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $255.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $245.99 million. Kadant had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 10.34%.The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.81 EPS. Kadant has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 2.130-2.230 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 9.050-9.250 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Kadant Inc will post 9.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kadant declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Kadant news, Director Thomas C. Leonard sold 415 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.41, for a total transaction of $140,440.15. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,250 shares in the company, valued at $1,438,242.50. The trade was a 8.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kadant Profile

Kadant Inc supplies technologies and engineered systems worldwide. It operates in three segments: Flow Control, Industrial Processing, and Material Handling. The Flow Control segment develops, manufactures, and markets fluid-handling systems and equipment, such as rotary joints, syphons, turbulator bars, expansion joints, and engineered steam and condensate systems; and doctoring, cleaning, and filtration systems and related consumables consisting of doctor systems and holders, doctor blades, cleaning shower and fabric-conditioning systems, forming systems and wear surfaces, and water-filtration systems.