PDT Partners LLC Invests $754,000 in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE)

PDT Partners LLC bought a new position in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 23,617 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $754,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Astec Industries by 96.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 171,101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,465,000 after purchasing an additional 84,202 shares in the last quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in Astec Industries by 64.3% in the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 134,314 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,290,000 after buying an additional 52,571 shares during the period. Peregrine Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 41.0% in the 2nd quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 175,738 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,212,000 after acquiring an additional 51,141 shares during the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Astec Industries by 7.7% during the second quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 581,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $17,247,000 after buying an additional 41,800 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Astec Industries by 72.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 73,229 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,172,000 after acquiring an additional 30,717 shares in the last quarter. 93.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astec Industries Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ASTE opened at $39.05 on Tuesday. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.46 and a 12-month high of $44.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $33.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $890.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -488.13 and a beta of 1.26.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 7.69% and a negative net margin of 0.15%. The business had revenue of $291.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $312.90 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.01) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Astec Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. Astec Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently -650.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ASTE shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Astec Industries from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com upgraded Astec Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday.

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.