Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) Stock Price Up 10.1% – Here’s Why

Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) was up 10.1% on Monday. The stock traded as high as $36.69 and last traded at $36.9270. 62,943 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 119,800 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.54.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KRT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Lake Street Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Karat Packaging in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Bank of America raised their price target on Karat Packaging from $23.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Karat Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Karat Packaging from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.00.

Karat Packaging Trading Up 10.6%

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.31. The stock has a market cap of $739.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.67, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 2.25.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $134.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $140.33 million. Karat Packaging had a net margin of 9.39% and a return on equity of 28.67%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Karat Packaging Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Karat Packaging’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Karat Packaging

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KRT. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Karat Packaging during the second quarter valued at about $19,840,000. Ranger Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Karat Packaging in the 2nd quarter worth about $11,129,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Karat Packaging by 570.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 208,330 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,948,000 after purchasing an additional 177,246 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Karat Packaging by 35.9% in the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 185,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,725,000 after purchasing an additional 48,906 shares during the period. Finally, De Lisle Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Karat Packaging in the 2nd quarter valued at about $7,307,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.20% of the company’s stock.

About Karat Packaging

Karat Packaging Inc is a foodservice packaging company that manufactures and distributes disposable products for restaurants, cafés, convenience stores, supermarkets, institutional foodservice providers and other businesses. The company is headquartered in Chino, California, and serves customers primarily across North America through its distribution and manufacturing operations.

Its product portfolio includes paper and plastic cups, food containers, lids, cutlery, straws, gloves, napkins, bags and other supplies used for food preparation, packaging and takeout service.