Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $39.99 and last traded at $40.4550, with a volume of 24538 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $41.42.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ASTE shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Astec Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Astec Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Astec Industries in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Astec Industries Stock Down 1.7%

The firm has a market cap of $937.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $48.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.10). Astec Industries had a net margin of 1.26% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The business had revenue of $408.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $405.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Astec Industries, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current year.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. Astec Industries’s payout ratio is currently 61.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astec Industries

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the second quarter valued at $212,732,000. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in Astec Industries by 7,130.9% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,439,311 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $88,071,000 after purchasing an additional 1,419,406 shares in the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Astec Industries during the 2nd quarter worth about $14,783,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Astec Industries during the 2nd quarter worth about $13,538,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 142.3% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 347,231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,042,000 after buying an additional 203,911 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.16% of the company’s stock.

Astec Industries Company Profile

Astec Industries, Inc designs, engineers and manufactures equipment used in the infrastructure, aggregate processing, mining and energy industries. Its products support the production and handling of asphalt, concrete and other construction materials, as well as road building, recycling and related industrial applications.

The company’s product portfolio includes asphalt production plants, concrete plants, rock crushers, screens, feeders, material-handling systems, thermal-processing equipment and industrial heaters.