Teton Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 57,200 Astec Industries, Inc. $ASTE

Teton Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Astec Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTE) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 57,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,753,000. Astec Industries makes up approximately 1.7% of Teton Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Teton Advisors LLC owned 0.25% of Astec Industries at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ASTE. Amalgamated Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Astec Industries by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 6,736 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN grew its position in shares of Astec Industries by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN now owns 80,973 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,897,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Astec Industries by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 59,837 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,495,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Astec Industries by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,449 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $359,000 after buying an additional 1,055 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Astec Industries by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,717 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $530,000 after buying an additional 1,211 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.16% of the company’s stock.

Astec Industries Price Performance

Shares of ASTE opened at $57.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Astec Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $29.65 and a twelve month high of $64.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average of $52.92 and a 200-day moving average of $48.42.

Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.32. Astec Industries had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $400.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $374.21 million.

Astec Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Astec Industries’s payout ratio is 30.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ASTE shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Astec Industries from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Astec Industries in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Astec Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Edward Terrell Gilbert, Jr. sold 975 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.07, for a total transaction of $59,543.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,828 shares in the company, valued at $539,125.96. This represents a 9.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Astec Industries

Astec Industries, Inc is a designer and manufacturer of specialized equipment for infrastructure-related markets. Headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the company develops, engineers and produces machinery for asphalt road-building, aggregate processing, concrete production, underground mining, landscaping and utility installation. Astec’s product portfolio includes asphalt plants, portable crushers, conveyors, screening plants, mixers, continuous miners and related support equipment.

Organized into multiple operating segments—Roadbuilding; Aggregate & Mining; Energy; and Pavement Preservation & Maintenance—Astec Industries serves contractors and municipalities that build and maintain transportation, energy and utility networks.