Kennametal (NYSE:KMT) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Kennametal Inc. (NYSE:KMT) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $31.35 and last traded at $30.7120, with a volume of 1023087 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.73.

Key Stories Impacting Kennametal

Here are the key news stories impacting Kennametal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target for KMT from $25 to $37 (while keeping an “underweight” rating) — the new target implies roughly a 10%+ upside from the current level, which likely helped buying interest. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks flagged an 8.3% surge on higher?than?average volume and noted that recent earnings estimate revisions could support further gains — momentum and volume spikes often attract short?term investor attention. Kennametal (KMT) Surges 8.3%
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting KMT as a momentum and sector outperformer has been prominent this week, supporting investor interest and contributing to new highs. Is Kennametal (KMT) Outperforming Other Industrial Products Stocks This Year?
• Neutral Sentiment: Kennametal confirmed its Q2 FY2026 earnings call/webcast for Feb. 4 — a scheduled catalyst that could produce further volatility depending on results and guidance. Earnings Conference Call & Webcast
• Neutral Sentiment: Aggregated analyst coverage stories (e.g., a 7?analyst roundup and Zacks pieces on long?term momentum) provide broader context but include mixed views — useful for gauging consensus but not definitive near?term signals. What 7 Analyst Ratings Have To Say About Kennametal
• Negative Sentiment: Some published targets remain below the current share price — e.g., a reported target of $28.43 — and a consensus analyst recommendation of “Hold” limits upside conviction for more conservative investors. Kennametal (KMT) price target increased by 10.40% to 28.43

Analyst Ratings Changes

KMT has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Kennametal from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Kennametal from $25.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kennametal from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Kennametal from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Kennametal from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kennametal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.00.

Kennametal Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.55 billion, a PE ratio of 27.43, a PEG ratio of 4.31 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.49.

Kennametal (NYSE:KMT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $497.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $477.68 million. Kennametal had a return on equity of 8.35% and a net margin of 4.76%.The business’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. Kennametal has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.350-1.650 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Kennametal Inc. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Kennametal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. Kennametal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Kennametal by 17.7% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 30,474 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $649,000 after acquiring an additional 4,578 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Kennametal by 4.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 2,013 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 28,020 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kennametal by 39.3% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 229,903 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,897,000 after buying an additional 64,907 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kennametal by 15.2% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 221,153 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,711,000 after buying an additional 29,203 shares during the period.

Kennametal Company Profile

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.