Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Sells 28,884 Shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC cut its stake in Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI - Free Report) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 535,408 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 28,884 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned 4.57% of Kadant worth $150,080,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Kadant by 137.9% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 82,151 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $23,028,000 after acquiring an additional 47,618 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kadant by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 658,401 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $148,502,000 after buying an additional 4,529 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its holdings in shares of Kadant by 27.1% during the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 50,858 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $11,415,000 after buying an additional 10,858 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kadant during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $110,849,000. Finally, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kadant by 50.1% during the 3rd quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 57,053 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $12,868,000 after buying an additional 19,047 shares in the last quarter. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kadant

In other Kadant news, Director Jonathan W. Painter sold 7,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $330.25, for a total value of $2,311,750.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,615 shares in the company, valued at $2,514,853.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Jonathan W. Painter sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $330.25, for a total transaction of $2,311,750.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,514,853.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Stacy D. Krause sold 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.00, for a total transaction of $228,900.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 881 shares in the company, valued at $288,087. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,798 shares of company stock worth $2,899,004 over the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kadant Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:KAI traded down $5.95 during trading on Thursday, reaching $303.32. 77,248 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 97,141. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Kadant Inc. has a 1-year low of $183.19 and a 1-year high of $354.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $316.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $273.58. The firm has a market cap of $3.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.64 and a beta of 1.27.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The industrial products company reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $238.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.54 million. Kadant had a net margin of 12.12% and a return on equity of 16.20%. Research analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 9.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kadant Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. This is a boost from Kadant's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. Kadant's payout ratio is presently 11.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on KAI shares. StockNews.com cut Kadant from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Kadant in a report on Wednesday, February 14th.

Kadant Company Profile

Kadant Inc supplies technologies and engineered systems worldwide. It operates in three segments: Flow Control, Industrial Processing, and Material Handling. The Flow Control segment develops, manufactures, and markets fluid-handling systems and equipment, such as rotary joints, syphons, turbulator bars, expansion joints, and engineered steam and condensate systems; and doctoring, cleaning, and filtration systems and related consumables consisting of doctor systems and holders, doctor blades, cleaning shower and fabric-conditioning systems, forming systems and wear surfaces, and water-filtration systems.

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