Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest
by Danessa Lincoln · The Markets DailyKennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT – Get Free Report) saw a large drop in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,847,717 shares, a drop of 24.7% from the March 15th total of 3,782,838 shares. Currently, 3.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,259,908 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.
Analyst Ratings Changes
KMT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Kennametal from $25.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Kennametal from $29.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $32.00 price target on shares of Kennametal in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Kennametal from $28.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Kennametal from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kennametal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.67.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Kennametal
Kennametal Stock Down 2.8%
NYSE:KMT traded down $1.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $38.10. 697,230 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,473,599. Kennametal has a one year low of $17.62 and a one year high of $42.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $38.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.23. The company has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.48.
Kennametal (NYSE:KMT – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $529.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $514.70 million. Kennametal had a net margin of 5.43% and a return on equity of 9.46%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Kennametal has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.600 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.450 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Kennametal will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.
Kennametal Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Kennametal’s payout ratio is 55.94%.
Insider Activity
In related news, VP John Wayne Witt sold 5,060 shares of Kennametal stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.29, for a total transaction of $193,747.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,565.86. This trade represents a 75.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Carlonda R. Reilly sold 13,410 shares of Kennametal stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.31, for a total value of $486,917.10. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 38,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,406,867.26. The trade was a 25.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KMT. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Kennametal by 17.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 30,474 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $649,000 after purchasing an additional 4,578 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Kennametal by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,307 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $986,000 after acquiring an additional 2,013 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Kennametal by 13.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 240,556 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,124,000 after acquiring an additional 28,020 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in Kennametal by 39.3% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 229,903 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,897,000 after acquiring an additional 64,907 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Kennametal in the second quarter valued at about $585,000.
About Kennametal
Kennametal Inc is a global industrial technology company that designs and manufactures advanced materials, tooling systems, and engineered components for a range of demanding applications. Its solutions support precision metalworking, earthmoving, and wear-resistant environments, catering to customers seeking enhanced productivity, longer tool life, and reduced operating costs.
The company’s product portfolio spans indexable cutting tools, solid round tools, tool holders, metalworking fluid systems, wear parts, ceramics and composites, and custom-engineered components.