2,649 Shares in Kadant Inc (NYSE:KAI) Acquired by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund acquired a new position in shares of Kadant Inc (NYSE:KAI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,649 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $892,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in Kadant by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 1,761 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $608,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,187 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 13,029 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,495,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 836 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,226 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company's stock.

Kadant Price Performance

NYSE:KAI traded down $11.10 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $318.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 117,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 115,840. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $314.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $337.90. The company has a market capitalization of $3.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.84 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.62. Kadant Inc has a twelve month low of $281.30 and a twelve month high of $429.95.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.13. Kadant had a return on equity of 13.74% and a net margin of 10.63%. The firm had revenue of $239.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.41 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.38 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc will post 9.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kadant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Kadant's payout ratio is 14.44%.

Kadant declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, May 15th that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KAI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Kadant from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Kadant from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday.

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.