William Blair Reduces Earnings Estimates for Karat Packaging

Key Points

• William Blair has revised its Q3 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimate for Karat Packaging down to $0.43 from $0.44, maintaining a full-year earnings estimate of $1.66 per share.
• Truist Financial has upgraded its price target on Karat Packaging from $28.00 to $31.00 and maintains a "hold" rating.
• Karat Packaging's stock has shown a 0.8% increase, with a current market price of $26.64 and a market capitalization of $534.93 million.

Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT - Free Report) - Investment analysts at William Blair dropped their Q3 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Karat Packaging in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, August 5th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now forecasts that the company will post earnings of $0.43 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.44. The consensus estimate for Karat Packaging's current full-year earnings is $1.66 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Karat Packaging's Q1 2026 earnings at $0.23 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.55 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.56 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.31 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $1.66 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also commented on KRT. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Karat Packaging from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Karat Packaging from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 20th.

Karat Packaging Price Performance

Shares of KRT traded down $1.68 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $25.06. 123,391 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 68,955. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Karat Packaging has a 52-week low of $23.00 and a 52-week high of $33.89. The company has a market cap of $503.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.76 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.55.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Karat Packaging

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bailard Inc. increased its position in Karat Packaging by 75.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 22,060 shares of the company's stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 9,487 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Karat Packaging by 13.7% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 279,361 shares of the company's stock worth $7,863,000 after acquiring an additional 33,627 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 133.4% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 63,596 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,791,000 after acquiring an additional 36,352 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Karat Packaging by 148.0% during the 2nd quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 25,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $704,000 after acquiring an additional 14,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in Karat Packaging by 95.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 39,176 shares of the company's stock worth $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 19,098 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.20% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Alan Yu sold 750,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total transaction of $20,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,203,805 shares in the company, valued at $167,502,735. This represents a 10.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 66.20% of the company's stock.

Karat Packaging Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. Karat Packaging's dividend payout ratio is presently 120.00%.

Karat Packaging Company Profile

Karat Packaging Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and distribution of single-use disposable products in plastic, paper, biopolymer-based, and other compostable forms used in various restaurant and foodservice settings. It provides food and take-out containers, bags, tableware, cups, lids, cutlery, straws, specialty beverage ingredients, equipment, gloves, and other products under the Karat Earth brand.