Kennametal (NYSE: KMT) taps two veteran CEOs for board seats
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
KENNAMETAL INC (KMT) reported that its Board of Directors appointed Dawne S. Hickton and Richard J. Harshman as directors, effective September 1, 2026, to serve until the October 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, where they will be proposed for election. Both bring extensive public-company leadership and board experience in industrial, materials, aerospace and defense markets. They will be eligible for the customary non‑employee director compensation and will enter into existing director Indemnification Agreements that provide advancement of expenses and protection against liability other than for willful misconduct or recklessness. Kennametal also highlighted its scale as an industrial technology company, stating it generated $2.4 billion in revenue in fiscal 2026 and employs about 8,100 people serving customers in nearly 100 countries.
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8-K Event Classification
3 items: 5.02, 8.01, 9.01
3 items
Item 5.02
Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers
Governance
Key personnel changes including departures, elections, or appointments of directors and executive officers.
Item 8.01
Other Events
Other
Voluntary disclosure of events the company deems important to shareholders but not covered by other items.
Item 9.01
Financial Statements and Exhibits
Exhibits
Financial statements, pro forma financial information, and exhibit attachments filed with this report.
Key Figures
Revenue: $2.4 billion
Employees: 8,100
Countries Served: nearly 100
+2 more
5 metrics
Revenue
$2.4 billion
Kennametal revenues in fiscal 2026
Employees
8,100
Approximate number of employees worldwide
Countries Served
nearly 100
Countries where Kennametal serves customers
Director Effective Date
September 1, 2026
Start of Board service for Hickton and Harshman
Annual Meeting
October 2026
Meeting where new directors will be proposed for election
Key Terms
Indemnification Agreement, additive manufacturing, Preferred Stock Purchase Rights, Critical Mission Solutions
4 terms
Indemnification Agreement regulatory
"will each be entering into an Indemnification Agreement with the Company"
An indemnification agreement is a contract in which one party promises to cover losses, costs, or legal claims that another party might face, acting like a tailored safety net or private insurance policy. For investors, it matters because such agreements shift potential financial risk away from a company or its officers and onto the indemnifier, which can affect a company’s future liabilities, cash flow and how risky the investment appears during deal-making or litigation.
additive manufacturing technical
"an additive manufacturing business with manufacturing locations in Austin, Texas"
Additive manufacturing, often called 3D printing, builds physical parts by laying down material layer by layer from a digital design, rather than cutting or molding from a solid block. It matters to investors because it can cut production time and waste, enable cheaper prototypes and customized products, and reshape supply chains—changes that can lower costs, speed new products to market, and create competitive advantages that affect a company's revenue and margins.
Preferred Stock Purchase Rights financial
"Preferred Stock Purchase Rights | New York Stock Exchange"
Critical Mission Solutions technical
"President of its Critical Mission Solutions business, which provided engineering design"
FAQ
What board changes did KENNAMETAL INC (KMT) announce on August 18, 2026?
Kennametal announced the appointment of Dawne S. Hickton and Richard J. Harshman to its Board of Directors. They will serve from September 1, 2026 until the October 2026 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, where they will be proposed for election.
What relevant experience does new Kennametal director Dawne Hickton bring to KMT?
Dawne Hickton is Chair, CEO and lead investor of Cumberland Additive, Inc., and formerly led RTI International Metals. She has extensive aerospace, defense and energy market experience and currently serves on the board of Commercial Metals Company (CMC), among other board roles.
What is the background of new Kennametal director Richard Harshman?
Richard Harshman is the former Chairman, President and CEO of ATI, Inc., with over four decades at ATI and its predecessors. He currently serves on the boards of PNC Financial Services Group Inc. and Ameren Corporation, chairing key audit and risk committees.
How large is Kennametal’s business according to this KMT filing?
Kennametal stated it generated $2.4 billion in revenues in fiscal 2026. The company reports approximately 8,100 employees serving customers in nearly 100 countries, reflecting its scale as a global industrial technology provider.
What protections do the new Kennametal directors receive under the Indemnification Agreement?
Hickton and Harshman will each enter an Indemnification Agreement entitling them to be held harmless and indemnified against liability other than for willful misconduct or recklessness. The agreement also provides for the advancement of expenses related to their board service.
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): August 14, 2026
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation) | (Commission File Number) | (IRS Employer Identification No.) | |||||||||||||||
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) | ||||||||||||||||
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (412 ) 248-8000
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (17 CFR §230.405) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (17 CFR §240.12b-2). Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||||||
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
On August 18, 2026, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Kennametal Inc. (the “Company”) announced the appointment of Richard J. Harshman, age 70, and Dawne Hickton, age 68, to serve as members of the Board of Directors to hold office from September 1, 2026 until the Annual Meeting of Shareholders in October 2026, where they would be proposed to be elected. Neither Mr. Harshman, nor Ms. Hickton, will immediately be serving on any Committees of the Board but are expected to be appointed to serve on one or more Committees in the coming months.
Mr. Harshman is the retired Executive Chairman and former President and Chief Executive Officer of Allegheny Technologies Incorporated (now known as ATI Inc.) (“ATI”), a global manufacturer of technically advanced specialty materials and complex parts and components. Mr. Harshman served as the Chairman, President and CEO of ATI from 2011 through 2018. Mr. Harshman previously served in other roles at ATI, including President and Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to 2011, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer from 2000 to 2010 and other roles of increasing responsibility since 1996.
Ms. Hickton is the Chair, Chief Executive Officer and lead investor of Cumberland Additive, Inc., an additive manufacturing business with manufacturing locations in Austin, Texas and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, serving customers in space, aerospace and defense, since June 2022. Immediately prior to her current role, Ms. Hickton served as Executive Vice President of Jacobs Solutions Inc. (“Jacobs”), and President of its Critical Mission Solutions business, starting in June 2019. Ms. Hickton had previously been elected to the Board of Directors of Jacobs in 2015 where she served on the Audit and Governance committees of the Board. Prior to her position at Jacobs, from 2007 until 2015, Ms. Hickton was the Vice Chair, President, and CEO of RTI International Metals, Inc. (“RTI”) a billion dollar, vertically integrated global supplier of advanced titanium and specialty metals fabricated structural products for the aerospace, defense and energy markets.
Mr. Harshman and Ms. Hickton are eligible to participate in all customary compensation plans applicable to non-employee members of the Board, as described in the Company’s definitive proxy statement filed on September 15, 2025. Each is also entitled to reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with his or her service on the Board and attendance at Board and Committee meetings.
Mr. Harshman and Ms. Hickton will each be entering into an Indemnification Agreement with the Company in the form previously approved by the Board. Under the Indemnification Agreement, a form of which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to the Form 8-K filed by the Company on March 22, 2005, and is incorporated herein by reference, Mr. Harshman and Ms. Hickton will be entitled to be held harmless and indemnified by the Company against liability other than for willful misconduct or recklessness. The Indemnification Agreement also provides for the advancement of expenses.
There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Harshman or Ms. Hickton and any other person pursuant to which Mr. Harshman or Ms. Hickton was appointed to the Board. Neither Mr. Harshman, nor Ms. Hickton has entered into any transactions with the Company that are required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.
Item 8.01 Other Events.
On August 18, 2026 the Company issued a press release announcing Mr. Harshman’s and Ms. Hickton’s election as members of the Board of Directors. A copy of this press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits
99.1 Richard Harshman and Dawne Hickton Press Release dated August 18, 2026
104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)
Signatures
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| KENNAMETAL INC. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date: | August 18, 2026 | By: | /s/ Michelle R. Keating | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michelle R. Keating | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vice President, Secretary and General Counsel | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Exhibit 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
DATE: August 18, 2026
| Investor Relations | Media Relations | ||||
| CONTACT: Michael Pici | CONTACT: Lori Lecker | ||||
| PHONE: 412-790-0792 | PHONE: 412-248-8224 | ||||
| michael.pici@kennametal.com | lori.lecker@kennametal.com | ||||
Kennametal Names Dawne Hickton and Richard Harshman to its Board of Directors
PITTSBURGH, August 18, 2026 — Kennametal Inc. (NYSE: KMT) today announced the election of Dawne S. Hickton and Richard J. Harshman to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Hickton is Chair, CEO and lead investor of Cumberland Additive, Inc., an additive manufacturing business serving aerospace, defense and space requirements. Harshman is the former Chairman, President and CEO of ATI, Inc. and currently serves on the Board of Directors for two other publicly traded companies.
“Dawne and Rich bring outstanding executive leadership, public company board experience and deep knowledge of the industrial, materials, and aerospace and defense markets to our Board of Directors,” said Sanjay Chowbey, President and CEO of Kennametal. “Their strategic, operational and financial expertise will strengthen our Board and help us continue to execute our strategy and create long-term value for shareholders.”
William M. Lambert, outgoing Chairman of Kennametal’s Board of Directors, added: “Dawne and Rich each have a proven record leading complex, global businesses. Their experience in governance, manufacturing and end markets are closely aligned with Kennametal and will be valuable to the Board and our management team.”
About Hickton
Hickton is Chair, CEO and lead investor of Cumberland Additive, Inc., an additive manufacturing business with manufacturing locations in Austin, Texas and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, serving customers in space, aerospace and defense.
Prior to Cumberland Additive, Hickton served as Executive Vice President of Jacobs and President of its Critical Mission Solutions business, which provided engineering design and support services for NASA, nuclear remediation and new-build work, and solutions for national security priorities in the United States and allied countries.
Earlier in her career, Hickton served as Vice Chair, President and CEO of RTI International Metals, Inc., a global supplier of advanced titanium and specialty metals fabricated structural products for aerospace, defense and energy markets. RTI was acquired by Alcoa in 2015.
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Hickton currently serves on the Board of Directors of Commercial Metals Company (CMC) and chairs the Board of Directors at Elevra Lithium. She has served on multiple public and private company boards, including Jacobs, Haynes International, Triumph Aerospace Group, Norsk Titanium AS and FNB Bank Corporation, and has also served as Director and Chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Rochester and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pittsburgh.
About Harshman
Harshman brings extensive executive leadership, financial and corporate governance experience having spent more than four decades at ATI, Inc. and its predecessor companies. He served as Chairman, President and CEO of ATI from May 2011 to December 2018 and as Executive Chair of the Board from January to May 2019.
Harshman currently serves on the Board of Directors of PNC Financial Services Group Inc., where he chairs the Audit Committee and serves on the Human Resources and Nominating and Governance Committees. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Ameren Corporation, where he chairs the Audit and Risk Committee and serves on the Human Resources Committee.
During his career at ATI and its predecessor companies, Harshman held roles including Executive Vice President and CFO, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications, Vice President of Business Ethics and Compliance, and senior finance and operational finance roles across aerospace, electronics and specialty materials businesses.
Harshman holds a BSBA in Accounting from Robert Morris University and received a Certified Public Accounting certificate from the California State Board of Accountancy.
About Kennametal
With over 85 years as an industrial technology leader, Kennametal Inc. delivers productivity to customers through materials science, tooling and wear-resistant solutions. Customers across aerospace and defense, earthworks, energy, general engineering and transportation turn to Kennametal to help them manufacture with precision and efficiency. Every day approximately 8,100 employees are helping customers in nearly 100 countries stay competitive. Kennametal generated $2.4 billion in revenues in fiscal 2026. Learn more at www.kennametal.com. Follow @Kennametal: Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.
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