Kadant Inc

Kadant Inc. announced a structured leadership succession plan on September 10 under which 13-year company veteran Michael C. Colwell will become President and Chief Operating Officer on October 1, then succeed long-time chief executive Jeffrey L. Powell as Chief Executive Officer on January 2, 2027. Powell, who has led Kadant for over 18 years, will continue as President through September 30 and as CEO through January 2, 2027, after which he will serve as Executive Chairman through January 1, 2028, while Chairman Jonathan W. Painter steps down from the board effective January 2, 2027. Colwell has served as Senior Vice President of the Industrial Processing segment since December 2024, overseeing global operations in wood processing and fiber processing equipment, and joined the company when Kadant acquired Kadant Carmanah Design in November 2013, an entity he had led as President since 2010. The transition comes as Kadant's Q2 2026 results showed total revenue rising 23% year-over-year to a record $313 million, with organic revenue up 8%, total bookings up 16% to $312 million, organic bookings down 1%, and gross margin contracting 210 basis points to 43.8%. Short interest stands at 13.33% of total float, and the stock traded at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16x as of September 24.

Kadant announced a board-adopted succession plan that will make Michael C. Colwell president and chief operating officer effective October 1, 2026, and president, chief executive officer and a director effective January 2, 2027. Jeffrey L. Powell will continue as president through September 30, 2026, and as chief executive officer through January 2, 2027, when he becomes executive chairman of the board. Jonathan W. Painter, the current chairman, will cease to serve as a director and chairman on January 2, 2027. Colwell has been a senior vice president since December 2024, was a vice president from August 2022 to December 2024, and is responsible for the company's Industrial Processing segment; he previously served as president of Kadant Carmanah Design, a division of subsidiary Kadant Canada, from 2013 to 2019, and as president and chief executive officer of Carmanah Design and Manufacturing from April 2010 until its acquisition by the company in November 2013. Kadant said the plan is designed to retain Powell's services for one year following the appointment of his successor as CEO.