Essentra (LON:ESNT) Trading Up 6% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Essentra plc (LON:ESNT) were up 6% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as GBX 87.30 and last traded at GBX 86.90. Approximately 13,863,217 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 426% from the average daily volume of 2,636,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 82.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on ESNT. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a GBX 130 price objective on shares of Essentra in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Essentra to GBX 130 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Essentra from GBX 150 to GBX 100 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Berenberg Bank reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a GBX 160 price objective on shares of Essentra in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Essentra has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of GBX 150.

Essentra Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of GBX 87.73 and a 200 day moving average of GBX 95.12. The firm has a market cap of £246.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 124.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 47.67.

Essentra (LON:ESNT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 17th. The company reported GBX 6.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Essentra had a return on equity of 0.79% and a net margin of 0.70%. Equities research analysts predict that Essentra plc will post 524.137931 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Essentra

In other Essentra news, insider Scott Fawcett sold 21,279 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 90, for a total transaction of £19,151.10. Also, insider Rowan Baker bought 10,977 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 91 per share, with a total value of £9,989.07. Insiders have bought a total of 91,194 shares of company stock worth $8,208,359 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

About Essentra

Essentra plc is a leading global provider of essential components and solutions, focusing on the manufacture and distribution of plastic injection moulded, vinyl dip moulded and metal items.

Headquartered in the United Kingdom, Essentra’s global network extends to 28 countries worldwide and includes c.3,000 employees, 14 manufacturing facilities, 26 distribution centres and 37 sales & service centres serving c.64,000 customers with a rapid supply of low cost but essential products for a variety of applications in industries such as equipment manufacturing, automotive, fabrication, electronics, medical and renewable energy.