Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 305 Shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,098 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Kadant were worth $1,069,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Kadant in the fourth quarter worth $193,595,000. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Kadant by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 280,797 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $94,909,000 after buying an additional 6,412 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Kadant by 1.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 144,344 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $48,788,000 after buying an additional 1,629 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Kadant by 1.6% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 130,291 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $44,036,000 after acquiring an additional 2,068 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kadant by 34.8% in the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 122,624 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $41,447,000 after acquiring an additional 31,675 shares during the period. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kadant Stock Performance

Shares of Kadant stock opened at $340.70 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $368.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $358.29. Kadant Inc. has a 1-year low of $249.51 and a 1-year high of $429.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.94 and a beta of 1.25.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.17. Kadant had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.59%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 9.97 EPS for the current year.

Kadant Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This is an increase from Kadant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kadant’s payout ratio is presently 14.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $410.00 price target on shares of Kadant in a report on Friday, 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.