Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) Short Interest Update

Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) saw a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,420,000 shares, a growth of 7.6% from the May 31st total of 1,320,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 82,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 17.3 days.

Kadant Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KAI traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $293.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 91,509. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $280.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $292.27. Kadant has a one year low of $196.99 and a one year high of $354.02. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.55 and a beta of 1.24.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.42. Kadant had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company had revenue of $248.98 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $245.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.40 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Kadant will post 10.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kadant Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 11th. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Kadant in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $360.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th.

Insider Activity at Kadant

In other Kadant news, Director Erin L. Russell sold 1,112 shares of Kadant stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.25, for a total value of $310,526.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,061,708.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kadant

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Kadant by 58.2% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Kadant by 37.0% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 185 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Kadant by 7.1% during the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 855 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management grew its stake in Kadant by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 1,769 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $496,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new position in Kadant during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

About Kadant

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.