Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 312 Shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI)

Voya Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Kadant Inc. (NYSE:KAI) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 312 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Kadant were worth $1,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its stake in Kadant by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 1,761 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $608,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Kadant by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Kadant by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 5,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,813,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kadant by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,510 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,483,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kadant by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Kadant Stock Performance

NYSE:KAI opened at $293.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $330.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $356.65. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.97 and a beta of 1.30. Kadant Inc. has a 1-year low of $266.23 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.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The industrial products company reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.13. Kadant had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.59%. The company had revenue of $239.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.41 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc. will post 9.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Kadant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders 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 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This is a positive change from Kadant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on KAI shares. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Kadant from $300.00 to $275.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st.

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.