Premier Fund Managers Ltd Sells 1,823 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. $ESE

Premier Fund Managers Ltd lessened its position in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 32.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,810 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 1,823 shares during the quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $750,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 3,140.0% in the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 162 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in ESCO Technologies during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in ESCO Technologies during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 100.0% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 188 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ESCO Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut ESCO Technologies from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $300.00.

ESCO Technologies Trading Down 1.0%

ESCO Technologies stock opened at $336.05 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $291.93 and a 200 day moving average of $245.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.18. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 12-month low of $162.74 and a 12-month high of $346.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $289.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $289.30 million. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 25.28% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Company Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc is a diversified manufacturer of engineered products and systems designed to meet customers’ critical performance requirements in the test, measurement, control, and filtration of data, fluids, and gases. The company serves a wide range of end markets, including commercial aerospace, defense, industrial, medical, and communication network sectors. ESCO’s solutions are tailored to environments where reliability, precision and regulatory compliance are paramount.

Operating through multiple business segments, ESCO Technologies delivers test and measurement instruments such as RF and microwave components, signal distribution systems, and integrated test enclosures that support defense and aerospace programs.