Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT) has received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the five research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have given a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $26.60.

A number of analysts have commented on KMT shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Kennametal from $28.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Kennametal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $32.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Kennametal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays set a $25.00 price target on shares of Kennametal and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Kennametal Stock Down 0.2 %

KMT stock opened at $21.58 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a PE ratio of 17.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 1.69. Kennametal has a 52 week low of $20.50 and a 52 week high of $32.18. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $22.67 and a 200 day moving average of $24.93.

Kennametal (NYSE:KMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.27 by ($0.02). Kennametal had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 4.76%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Kennametal will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Kennametal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 11th. Kennametal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Sanjay Chowbey bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $21.75 per share, with a total value of $217,500.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,595 shares in the company, valued at $1,687,691.25. The trade was a 14.79 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.41% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kennametal

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KMT. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in Kennametal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $962,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Kennametal by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 212,536 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,105,000 after acquiring an additional 41,163 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Kennametal by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 640,162 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,377,000 after acquiring an additional 8,753 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Kennametal in the 4th quarter worth $487,000. Finally, Twinbeech Capital LP acquired a new position in Kennametal during the fourth quarter worth $410,000.

About Kennametal

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.