Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Has $599,000 Stock Position in Astec Industries, Inc. $ASTE

Key Points

• Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd sharply reduced its Astec Industries stake by 74.3% in the first quarter, leaving it with 11,117 shares valued at about $599,000.
• Institutional ownership in Astec Industries remains very high at 93.16%, with several other funds and hedge funds either adding to or building positions in the stock.
• Astec Industries recently reported Q1 EPS of $0.54, missing analyst expectations, while revenue came in slightly above estimates; the stock also carries a consensus Buy rating and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share.

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd cut its stake in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Free Report) by 74.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,117 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 32,074 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd's holdings in Astec Industries were worth $599,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ASTE. Penn Capital Management Company LLC acquired a new position in shares of Astec Industries in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $10,096,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Astec Industries by 142.3% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 347,231 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $15,042,000 after buying an additional 203,911 shares during the last quarter. Harvey Partners LLC raised its stake in Astec Industries by 48.3% during the third quarter. Harvey Partners LLC now owns 501,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $24,113,000 after buying an additional 163,155 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Astec Industries by 184.2% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 191,498 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,296,000 after buying an additional 124,111 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Astec Industries by 29.9% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 494,814 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $20,629,000 after buying an additional 113,765 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASTE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Astec Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Longbow Research raised Astec Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Zacks Research upgraded Astec Industries from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings cut Astec Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded Astec Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy".

Astec Industries Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ASTE opened at $55.82 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $53.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.96. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.82 and a 1-year high of $65.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.34). Astec Industries had a return on equity of 10.09% and a net margin of 1.75%.The firm had revenue of $396.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $393.24 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Astec Industries, Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Astec Industries's payout ratio is presently 46.43%.

Astec Industries Company Profile

Astec Industries, Inc is a designer and manufacturer of specialized equipment for infrastructure-related markets. Headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the company develops, engineers and produces machinery for asphalt road-building, aggregate processing, concrete production, underground mining, landscaping and utility installation. Astec's product portfolio includes asphalt plants, portable crushers, conveyors, screening plants, mixers, continuous miners and related support equipment.

Organized into multiple operating segments—Roadbuilding; Aggregate & Mining; Energy; and Pavement Preservation & Maintenance—Astec Industries serves contractors and municipalities that build and maintain transportation, energy and utility networks.

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