Kadant Inc $KAI Holdings Decreased by Southernsun Asset Management LLC

Southernsun Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in Kadant Inc (NYSE:KAI) by 4.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,018 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,015 shares during the quarter. Kadant comprises about 1.8% of Southernsun Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Southernsun Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Kadant were worth $12,576,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KAI. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new position in Kadant during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,012,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kadant by 14.8% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,646 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kadant in the 1st quarter worth approximately $6,577,000. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kadant by 79.2% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Kadant by 0.6% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 6,120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,789,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kadant from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Zacks Research cut Kadant from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Kadant from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $341.50.

Insider Activity at Kadant

In related news, SVP Stacy D. Krause sold 1,227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $334.17, for a total value of $410,026.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $455,473.71. This trade represents a 47.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Kadant Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of KAI opened at $308.32 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $307.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $315.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.16 and a beta of 1.20. Kadant Inc has a 1-year low of $244.87 and a 1-year high of $369.97.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.73. Kadant had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The company had revenue of $281.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. Kadant has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.880-2.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.330-12.680 EPS. Analysts expect that Kadant Inc will post 12.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Kadant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 16th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 16th. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio is 16.42%.

Kadant announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 21st that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to buy up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.