Barclays PLC Boosts Stake in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE)

Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) by 118.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,529 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,017 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned 0.18% of Astec Industries worth $1,294,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Astec Industries during the third quarter worth $45,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Astec Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Astec Industries in the 3rd quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Astec Industries during the 3rd quarter worth $72,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.16% of the company’s stock.

Astec Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Astec Industries stock opened at $33.22 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $757.48 million, a PE ratio of -415.20 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Astec Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.46 and a 52 week high of $44.74. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.07.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31. Astec Industries had a negative net margin of 0.15% and a positive return on equity of 7.69%. The company had revenue of $291.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $312.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.01) earnings per share. Astec Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Astec Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -650.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Astec Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Astec Industries from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th.

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.