Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Robert W. Baird Analyst Says

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) had its price objective hoisted by Robert W. Baird from $36.00 to $40.00 in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Astec Industries Price Performance

Shares of ASTE stock traded up $0.74 on Thursday, hitting $37.87. 131,742 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 150,041. The firm has a market cap of $863.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -464.13 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.60. Astec Industries has a 52 week low of $28.46 and a 52 week high of $44.74.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31. Astec Industries had a positive return on equity of 6.56% and a negative net margin of 0.18%. The company had revenue of $291.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $312.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.01) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. Astec Industries’s payout ratio is -650.00%.

Institutional Trading of Astec Industries

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Astec Industries by 3.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 8,912 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 69.8% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Astec Industries by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 17,413 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $762,000 after acquiring an additional 975 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the 1st quarter valued at about $66,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in shares of Astec Industries by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 19,117 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $835,000 after purchasing an additional 1,878 shares during the last quarter. 93.16% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astec Industries Company Profile

Astec Industries, Inc designs, engineers, manufactures, and markets equipment and components used primarily in road building and related construction activities worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Infrastructure Solutions and Materials Solutions. The Infrastructure Solutions segment offers asphalt plants and related components, heaters, concrete dust control systems, asphalt pavers, vaporizers, concrete material handling systems, screeds, heat recovery units, paste back-fill plants, asphalt storage tanks, hot oil heaters, bagging plants, fuel storage tanks, industrial and asphalt burners and systems, custom batch plants, material transfer vehicles, soil stabilizing-reclaiming machinery, blower trucks and trailers, milling machines, soil remediation plants, wood chippers and grinders, pump trailers, concrete batch plants, control systems, liquid terminals, storage equipment and related parts, construction and retrofits, polymer plants, and concrete mixers, as well as engineering and environmental permitting services.