JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Stock Holdings in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE - Free Report) by 79.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 101,287 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 44,701 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.44% of Astec Industries worth $3,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in Astec Industries by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 875,128 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $27,952,000 after acquiring an additional 26,256 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in Astec Industries by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,929 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,531,000 after purchasing an additional 9,841 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 118.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 40,529 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,294,000 after buying an additional 22,017 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Astec Industries by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 569,089 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $18,180,000 after buying an additional 22,743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 3rd quarter worth $218,000. 93.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Astec Industries Stock Performance

NASDAQ ASTE traded down $0.26 on Friday, reaching $35.40. 74,645 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 159,541. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $34.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.47. The firm has a market cap of $807.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -442.44 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 2.47. Astec Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $28.46 and a fifty-two week high of $43.18.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $359.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $374.10 million. Astec Industries had a positive return on equity of 7.69% and a negative net margin of 0.15%.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Astec Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 273.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Astec Industries from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Astec Industries from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

About Astec Industries

Astec Industries, Inc designs, engineers, manufactures, and markets equipment and components used primarily in road building and related construction activities worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Infrastructure Solutions and Materials Solutions. The Infrastructure Solutions segment offers asphalt plants and related components, heaters, concrete dust control systems, asphalt pavers, vaporizers, concrete material handling systems, screeds, heat recovery units, paste back-fill plants, asphalt storage tanks, hot oil heaters, bagging plants, fuel storage tanks, industrial and asphalt burners and systems, custom batch plants, material transfer vehicles, soil stabilizing-reclaiming machinery, blower trucks and trailers, milling machines, soil remediation plants, wood chippers and grinders, pump trailers, concrete batch plants, control systems, liquid terminals, storage equipment and related parts, construction and retrofits, polymer plants, and concrete mixers, as well as engineering and environmental permitting services.