Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. Purchases Shares of 98,320 Karat Packaging Inc. $KRT

Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 98,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,290,000.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Karat Packaging by 188.8% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Karat Packaging by 61.5% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Karat Packaging during the third quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Karat Packaging in the 2nd quarter worth $75,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in Karat Packaging by 142.8% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,861 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 2,271 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on KRT. William Blair upgraded Karat Packaging from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective on shares of Karat Packaging in a research report on Friday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Karat Packaging to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Bank of America raised their price target on Karat Packaging from $23.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Karat Packaging from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.50.

Karat Packaging Stock Down 0.4%

KRT opened at $49.26 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $39.49 and its 200 day moving average is $31.57. Karat Packaging Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.61 and a fifty-two week high of $50.81. The stock has a market cap of $981.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 2.25.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $1.01. Karat Packaging had a return on equity of 30.62% and a net margin of 10.18%.The firm had revenue of $136.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $135.46 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Karat Packaging Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. This is a boost from Karat Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Karat Packaging’s payout ratio is currently 75.20%.

About Karat Packaging

Karat Packaging Technologies, Inc (NASDAQ: KRT) is a U.S.-based provider of premium packaging solutions for consumer goods and industrial products. The company specializes in the design, manufacture and delivery of high-quality litho-laminated folding cartons, tubes and flexible packaging. Karat Packaging operates an integrated production model that combines prepress, printing, converting and finishing capabilities to support the branding and shelf-appeal needs of its customers.

The company serves a diverse range of end markets, including food and beverage, confectionery, health and beauty, pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals and promotional packaging.