Karat Packaging Inc. $KRT Shares Purchased by Ranger Investment Management L.P.

Ranger Investment Management L.P. boosted its stake in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) by 8.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 325,104 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 24,405 shares during the quarter. Ranger Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Karat Packaging were worth $9,077,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Karat Packaging by 87.2% in the fourth quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 107,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,431,000 after acquiring an additional 50,178 shares in the last quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Karat Packaging during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,377,000. KTF Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Karat Packaging during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,075,000. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Karat Packaging by 10.4% in the 1st quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. now owns 69,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,930,000 after purchasing an additional 6,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Karat Packaging in the 1st quarter valued at $437,000. 25.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. William Blair upgraded Karat Packaging from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Karat Packaging in a report on Thursday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Karat Packaging to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Karat Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Karat Packaging from $23.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Karat Packaging has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.50.

Karat Packaging Stock Performance

Karat Packaging stock opened at $41.68 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.44. Karat Packaging Inc. has a 1-year low of $20.61 and a 1-year high of $42.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $831.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.85.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $116.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $112.98 million. Karat Packaging had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 19.87%. On average, analysts expect that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 1.78 EPS for the current year.

Karat Packaging Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. Karat Packaging’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 113.92%.

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.