ProShare Advisors LLC Sells 3,185 Shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI - Free Report) by 12.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,142 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,185 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.19% of Kadant worth $7,639,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in Kadant during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $464,000. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Kadant by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 504 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kadant by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 121,686 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,980,000 after purchasing an additional 445 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 87.1% in the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,590 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 740 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,132 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,460,000 after buying an additional 828 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Kadant Stock Down 1.2%

KAI traded down $3.76 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $305.17. 19,106 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 111,687. Kadant Inc. has a 1-year low of $266.23 and a 1-year high of $429.95. The stock's 50-day moving average is $317.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $354.92. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.30 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $239.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $239.41 million. Kadant had a net margin of 10.59% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.38 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Kadant Inc. will post 9.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kadant declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Kadant Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. Kadant's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.44%.

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.