Russell Investments Group Ltd. Increases Holdings in Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT - Free Report) by 28.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 79,645 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 17,419 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.40% of Karat Packaging worth $2,410,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KRT. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 20.8% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 5,538 shares of the company's stock worth $168,000 after acquiring an additional 955 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new stake in Karat Packaging during the fourth quarter valued at about $352,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Karat Packaging by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 182,271 shares of the company's stock worth $5,517,000 after buying an additional 3,626 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 187,549 shares of the company's stock worth $5,675,000 after buying an additional 6,224 shares during the period. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 25.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, William Blair cut shares of Karat Packaging from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd.

Karat Packaging Price Performance

KRT stock traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $25.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,577 shares, compared to its average volume of 38,561. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 3.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Karat Packaging Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.00 and a 12 month high of $33.89. The company has a 50 day moving average of $27.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $509.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17 and a beta of 1.12.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 6.78%. The firm had revenue of $101.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $102.27 million. On average, analysts expect that Karat Packaging Inc. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Karat Packaging Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.08%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from Karat Packaging's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Karat Packaging's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 120.81%.

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.