Kadant (NYSE:KAI) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The industrial products company reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.08, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $286.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.43 million. Kadant had a net margin of 9.69% and a return on equity of 11.57%. The company’s revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.25 EPS. Kadant updated its Q1 2026 guidance to 1.780-1.880 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance to 10.500-10.750 EPS.

Kadant Price Performance

Shares of KAI traded down $11.74 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $328.17. 205,939 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 141,864. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $314.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $304.53. The stock has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a PE ratio of 37.94 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 8.97, a quick ratio of 5.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Kadant has a 12 month low of $244.87 and a 12 month high of $387.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kadant news, Director Erin L. Russell sold 1,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.36, for a total transaction of $405,186.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,066 shares in the company, valued at $865,715.76. This represents a 31.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kadant

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in shares of Kadant by 1,300.0% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 84 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Kadant during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Kadant during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Kadant by 89.1% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 104 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kadant by 278.0% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. 96.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on KAI shares. DA Davidson set a $303.00 price objective on Kadant in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kadant in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of Kadant in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $341.50.

About Kadant

Kadant Inc, headquartered in Westford, Massachusetts, is a global supplier of high‐value, critical components and engineered systems for the pulp and paper industry and other process industries. The company’s product portfolio spans stock preparation technologies, refiners and pulpers, fluid handling systems, and web‐handling equipment designed to optimize the efficiency and quality of paper production. In addition to capital equipment, Kadant offers aftermarket services, including spare parts, maintenance programs and process optimization consulting, which together support long‐term customer productivity and reliability.

Originally part of a larger industrial conglomerate, Kadant was established as an independent public company in 1991.