Verus Capital Partners LLC Increases Holdings in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE)

Verus Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) by 34.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Astec Industries were worth $289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tompkins Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,602 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on ASTE. StockNews.com upgraded Astec Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Astec Industries from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Astec Industries Stock Performance

Shares of ASTE opened at $35.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $33.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.70. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.46 and a 52 week high of $44.74. The stock has a market cap of $811.30 million, a P/E ratio of -444.69 and a beta of 1.31.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.46. Astec Industries had a positive return on equity of 7.69% and a negative net margin of 0.15%. The firm had revenue of $359.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $374.10 million.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. Astec Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -650.00%.

Astec Industries 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.