State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Has $2.48 Million Stock Position in Kadant Inc $KAI

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its stake in shares of Kadant Inc (NYSE:KAI) by 33.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,715 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 2,203 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Kadant were worth $2,484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KAI. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 76,036.6% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 738,525 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $210,494,000 after purchasing an additional 737,555 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 141.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 99,703 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,670,000 after purchasing an additional 58,382 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 984,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $312,432,000 after purchasing an additional 34,561 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 163.8% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 55,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,374,000 after purchasing an additional 34,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Kadant by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 147,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $46,812,000 after purchasing an additional 28,380 shares in the last quarter. 96.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kadant Stock Performance

NYSE:KAI opened at $327.57 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $316.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $304.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 billion, a PE ratio of 37.35 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Kadant Inc has a twelve month low of $244.87 and a twelve month high of $369.97.

Kadant (NYSE:KAI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.11 by $0.73. The business had revenue of $281.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.95 million. Kadant had a return on equity of 12.26% and a net margin of 9.45%.Kadant’s revenue was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.10 earnings per share. Kadant has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.880-2.980 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.330-12.680 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Kadant Inc will post 12.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kadant Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This is a boost from Kadant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. Kadant’s dividend payout ratio is 16.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KAI. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kadant in a report on Friday, March 27th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Kadant in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research raised Kadant from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, DA Davidson set a $303.00 price objective on Kadant in a research note on Friday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $341.50.

More Kadant News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kadant this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — adjusted EPS of $2.84 and revenue of $281.5M (+18% YoY), both above consensus, supporting the rally. Kadant (KAI) Tops Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Record bookings and backlog — bookings rose ~25% to ~$321M and backlog was strong at ~$326M, signaling sustained demand and future revenue visibility. Kadant Inc. Reports Strong Q1 2026 Financial Results with Record Bookings and Revenue Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Company lifted revenue guidance for FY2026 (now $1.178–$1.203B) and gave adjusted EPS guidance of $12.33–$12.68, above the street consensus — a supportive sign for forward earnings expectations. Kadant Raises 2026 Revenue Guidance After Strong Quarter
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and valuations are being revisited after the beat; some analysts have raised targets while others remain cautious — expect active post‑earnings re‑rating. Assessing Kadant (KAI) Valuation After Q1 Earnings Beat And Ongoing Growth Trend
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor materials and the investor webcast are available (slides/press release) — useful for digging into segment trends and acquisition details. Kadant Q1 Press Release / Slides
• Negative Sentiment: Margin and organic-growth headwinds — gross margin fell ~110 bps to 45.0% and organic revenue declined ~1% (acquisitions accounted for most growth), highlighting integration and cost pressures. Kadant Reports First Quarter 2026 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Short-term EPS impact and cash-flow softness from recent acquisitions — management trimmed GAAP and adjusted EPS vs prior guidance (acquisition-related dilution) and operating cash flow/free cash flow were slightly down. Insider sales were also reported. These are potential near-term headwinds to watch. Kadant Inc (KAI) Releases Q1 2026 Earnings

Kadant Company Profile

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.