ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB) shares reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $93.69 and last traded at $95.3480, with a volume of 49562 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $97.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on ESAB. Oppenheimer increased their target price on ESAB from $142.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of ESAB from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of ESAB in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of ESAB from $144.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of ESAB from $130.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.25.

ESAB Stock Down 4.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $119.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $115.80.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 20th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. ESAB had a return on equity of 15.38% and a net margin of 7.98%.The firm had revenue of $687.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $687.80 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.28 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that ESAB Corporation will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

ESAB Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. ESAB’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ESAB news, CEO Shyam Kambeyanda sold 59,404 shares of ESAB stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total value of $7,353,621.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,864 shares in the company, valued at $12,362,164.56. The trade was a 37.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 7.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of ESAB

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of ESAB during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of ESAB in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of ESAB by 109.4% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ESAB by 259.4% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 381 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in ESAB by 3,023.1% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ESAB

ESAB Corporation is a global leader in welding, cutting and gas control technologies, offering a comprehensive portfolio of equipment, consumables and automation solutions. The company’s products include welding power sources, cutting machines, torches, electrodes, filler metals and gas regulating equipment designed to meet the needs of diverse industries. ESAB serves sectors such as construction, shipbuilding, automotive, energy, infrastructure and manufacturing, providing both standard and customized solutions to enhance productivity and quality in metal fabrication and processing.

Founded in 1904 by Swedish inventor Oscar Kjellberg, ESAB pioneered the development of coated welding electrodes, laying the groundwork for modern welding practices.