Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Buys 50,178 Shares of Karat Packaging Inc. $KRT

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its stake in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) by 87.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 107,730 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 50,178 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd.’s holdings in Karat Packaging were worth $2,431,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in shares of Karat Packaging in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. CWM LLC raised its position in Karat Packaging by 378.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,298 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Karat Packaging in the third quarter worth about $70,000. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Karat Packaging in the first quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, Prelude Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Karat Packaging in the third quarter worth about $227,000. Institutional investors own 25.20% of the company’s stock.

Karat Packaging Price Performance

Shares of Karat Packaging stock opened at $29.37 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $586.34 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.93. Karat Packaging Inc. has a 1-year low of $20.61 and a 1-year high of $32.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $27.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.93.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $115.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $113.95 million. Karat Packaging had a net margin of 6.73% and a return on equity of 19.63%. On average, equities analysts predict that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 1.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Karat Packaging Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. Karat Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is currently 115.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Karat Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Karat Packaging from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Bank of America set a $24.00 price target on shares of Karat Packaging and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Karat Packaging in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.50.

Karat Packaging Profile

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.