Boston Partners Cuts Stake in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT)

Boston Partners lessened its stake in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 109,616 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,932 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners owned 0.55% of Karat Packaging worth $3,317,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Karat Packaging by 38.4% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 2,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 722 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Karat Packaging by 40.8% during the fourth quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 5,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Karat Packaging during the fourth quarter valued at $291,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in Karat Packaging by 21.7% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 34,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,049,000 after buying an additional 6,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Karat Packaging by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 178,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,626,000 after buying an additional 24,020 shares during the last quarter. 25.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Karat Packaging Trading Down 1.8 %

Karat Packaging stock opened at $28.55 on Friday. Karat Packaging Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.10 and a 52-week high of $33.89. The company has a market cap of $572.06 million, a P/E ratio of 20.39 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 3.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.89.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.14). Karat Packaging had a net margin of 6.78% and a return on equity of 19.84%. The business had revenue of $101.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.27 million. Analysts predict that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Karat Packaging Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Karat Packaging’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.30%. Karat Packaging’s payout ratio is 120.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KRT. William Blair downgraded shares of Karat Packaging from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Karat Packaging from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th.

Karat Packaging Company Profile

Karat Packaging Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and distribution of single-use disposable products in plastic, paper, biopolymer-based, and other compostable forms used in various restaurant and foodservice settings. It provides food and take-out containers, bags, tableware, cups, lids, cutlery, straws, specialty beverage ingredients, equipment, gloves, and other products under the Karat Earth brand.