Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT) is seeing a large increase in short interest

Karat Packaging Inc. (NASDAQ:KRT – Get Free Report ) was the target of a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 92,800 shares, up 5.3% from August 15th’s total of 88,100 shares. Currently, 1.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume of 47,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Karat packaging stock up 0.2%

Shares of KRT traded up $0.04 on Wednesday, reaching $25.99. 4,996 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 45,881. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.70. The company has a market cap of $519.15 million, a P/E ratio of 17.53 and a beta of 1.03. Karat Packaging has a one year low of $17.23 and a one year high of $30.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 3.05, and a quick ratio of 1.62.

Karat Packaging (NASDAQ:KRT – Get Your Free Report ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $112.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.03 million. Karat Packaging had a return on equity of 19.79% and a net margin of 6.90%. During the same period last year, the company posted earnings per share of $0.68. research analysts anticipate that Karat Packaging will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Karat Packaging announces dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a dividend of $1.40 on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21. Karat Packaging’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.59%.

Institutional marketing of Karat packaging

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KRT. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in Karat Packaging by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 24,348 shares of the company’s stock worth $605,000 after purchasing an additional 3,668 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Karat Packaging during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,677,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Karat Packaging in the 1st quarter valued at about $115,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Karat Packaging by 0.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 348,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,976,000 after purchasing an additional 2,804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Karat Packaging by 11.7% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 261,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,489,000 after acquiring an additional 27,370 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.20% of the company’s shares.

Analysts set new price targets

Separately, Truist Financial downgraded shares of Karat Packaging from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $34.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Friday , August 9.

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About Karat Packaging

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Karat Packaging Inc, together with its subsidiaries, is engaged in the manufacture and distribution of disposable plastic, paper, biopolymer-based and other compostable products used in various restaurants and eateries. It offers food and food containers, bags, tableware, cups, lids, cutlery, straws, specialty drink ingredients, equipment, gloves and other products under the Karat Earth brand.

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