Kadant (NYSE:KAI) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.48 EPS

Key Points

• Kadant beat quarterly expectations: EPS came in at $3.42, $0.48 above consensus, while revenue reached $312.88 million versus the $299.17 million estimate.
• The company updated its guidance to $12.43–$12.68 in FY 2026 EPS and $2.90–$3.00 in Q3 2026 EPS. Shares rose 3.1% to $334.67 following the results.
• Kadant declared a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, equivalent to a 0.4% annualized yield, and authorized a $50 million share-repurchase program. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $341.50 target price.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The industrial products company reported $3.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.48, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $312.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $299.17 million. Kadant had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 12.13%. Kadant updated its FY 2026 guidance to 12.430-12.680 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance to 2.900-3.000 EPS.

Kadant Trading Up 3.1%

Kadant stock traded up $10.11 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $334.67. 121,638 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 156,276. Kadant has a 52-week low of $244.87 and a 52-week high of $357.65. The company has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.16 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $306.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $315.86.

Kadant Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 16th will be given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 16th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Kadant's dividend payout ratio is 16.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on KAI. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kadant from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $380.00 price target on shares of Kadant in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Zacks Research cut Kadant from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Kadant from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $341.50.

Kadant announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Kadant

In other Kadant news, SVP Stacy D. Krause sold 1,227 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $334.17, for a total value of $410,026.59. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,363 shares of the company's stock, valued at $455,473.71. This trade represents a 47.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kadant

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in Kadant by 1,300.0% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 84 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kadant in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kadant in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Kadant by 89.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 104 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kadant by 278.0% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 189 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.13% of the company's stock.

Kadant Company Profile

Kadant Inc, headquartered in Westford, Massachusetts, is a global supplier of high‐value, critical components and engineered systems for the pulp and paper industry and other process industries. The company's product portfolio spans stock preparation technologies, refiners and pulpers, fluid handling systems, and web‐handling equipment designed to optimize the efficiency and quality of paper production. In addition to capital equipment, Kadant offers aftermarket services, including spare parts, maintenance programs and process optimization consulting, which together support long‐term customer productivity and reliability.

Originally part of a larger industrial conglomerate, Kadant was established as an independent public company in 1991.

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