Marshall Wace LLP Reduces Stock Position in Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT)

Marshall Wace LLP reduced its holdings in shares of Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT - Free Report) by 78.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,054 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 204,690 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned about 0.07% of Kennametal worth $1,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Kennametal during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kennametal by 120.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,308 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 716 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Kennametal by 45.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,458 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Kennametal by 214.2% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 1,444 shares during the period. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kennametal by 801.8% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2,181 shares in the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Sanjay Chowbey acquired 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $21.75 per share, with a total value of $217,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,687,691.25. This represents a 14.79 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kennametal Price Performance

NYSE KMT traded up $0.64 during trading on Friday, hitting $20.17. 490,268 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 866,231. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 1.39. Kennametal Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.30 and a 12-month high of $32.18. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.66.

Kennametal (NYSE:KMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by ($0.02). Kennametal had a net margin of 4.76% and a return on equity of 8.12%. As a group, analysts predict that Kennametal Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Kennametal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. Kennametal's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Kennametal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Kennametal from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Kennametal from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $25.20.

Kennametal Profile

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.