Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 3,978 Shares of Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund decreased its stake in shares of Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT) by 8.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 44,831 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,978 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.06% of Kennametal worth $1,156,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Kennametal by 102.4% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 245,753 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,114,000 after purchasing an additional 124,349 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in Kennametal by 1,070.2% during the 3rd quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 124,067 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,087,000 after purchasing an additional 113,465 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP increased its position in Kennametal by 63.2% during the 3rd quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 211,943 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,273,000 after purchasing an additional 82,060 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC increased its position in Kennametal by 946.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 81,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,023,000 after purchasing an additional 73,533 shares during the period. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its position in Kennametal by 541.0% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 86,155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,144,000 after purchasing an additional 72,715 shares during the period.

Kennametal Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of Kennametal stock opened at $24.04 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $24.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Kennametal Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.08 and a 52-week high of $30.60. The company has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.03, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.78.

Kennametal (NYSE:KMT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The industrial products company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $495.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $498.99 million. Kennametal had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 9.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Kennametal Inc. will post 1.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kennametal announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 7th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Kennametal Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 13th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 12th. Kennametal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP John Wayne Witt sold 1,000 shares of Kennametal stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.55, for a total value of $25,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,343 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,313.65. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on KMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Kennametal from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kennametal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Kennametal from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Kennametal in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $24.58.

About Kennametal

Kennametal Inc engages in development and application of tungsten carbides, ceramics, and super-hard materials and solutions for use in metal cutting and extreme wear applications to enable customers work against corrosion and high temperatures conditions worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Metal Cutting and Infrastructure.