Kennametal (NYSE:KMT) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $22.11, but opened at $24.70. Kennametal shares last traded at $25.7860, with a volume of 574,885 shares changing hands.

The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.10. Kennametal had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 8.09%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Kennametal has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.350-1.650 EPS.

Kennametal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 24th. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 10th. Kennametal’s payout ratio is currently 66.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on KMT. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kennametal in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised Kennametal from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Kennametal from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised Kennametal from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $19.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kennametal presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $24.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kennametal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Kennametal by 557.1% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 77,877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,659,000 after buying an additional 66,025 shares during the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kennametal during the first quarter worth approximately $307,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kennametal during the first quarter worth approximately $3,949,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Kennametal by 8.4% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,077,284 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,946,000 after buying an additional 83,568 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Fund Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Kennametal during the first quarter worth approximately $517,000.

Kennametal Trading Up 17.8%

The company has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 1.46. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $21.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.19.

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.