Kennametal (NYSE:KMT) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $19.82, but opened at $21.25. Kennametal shares last traded at $19.68, with a volume of 272,032 shares trading hands.

The industrial products company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $486.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $489.30 million. Kennametal had a net margin of 4.76% and a return on equity of 8.12%. Kennametal's revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share.

Kennametal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. Kennametal's payout ratio is 65.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KMT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Kennametal from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. StockNews.com raised Kennametal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Kennametal from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $25.20.

Insider Activity at Kennametal

In other news, CEO Sanjay Chowbey bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $21.75 per share, for a total transaction of $217,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,687,691.25. This trade represents a 14.79 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kennametal

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KMT. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Kennametal by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 469,202 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $11,270,000 after acquiring an additional 115,718 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Kennametal in the fourth quarter worth $373,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Kennametal by 45.9% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,458 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. AMH Equity Ltd bought a new stake in Kennametal in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,441,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in Kennametal by 174.7% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 40,359 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $982,000 after purchasing an additional 25,666 shares during the period.

Kennametal Stock Down 1.1 %

The stock's 50 day moving average is $20.32 and its 200 day moving average is $23.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.53. The company has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a PE ratio of 16.02, a PEG ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 1.39.

About Kennametal

Kennametal Inc engages in development and application of tungsten carbides, ceramics, and super-hard materials and solutions for use in metal cutting and extreme wear applications to enable customers work against corrosion and high temperatures conditions worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Metal Cutting and Infrastructure.

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