Arizona State Retirement System Sells 76 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its position in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,399 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 76 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $1,177,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in ESCO Technologies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. CX Institutional acquired a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 1st quarter worth $38,000. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in ESCO Technologies by 150.0% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 305 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in ESCO Technologies by 627.1% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Benchmark boosted their target price on ESCO Technologies from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

ESE stock opened at $196.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.98 and a beta of 1.21. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.70 and a 1 year high of $198.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $186.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $163.31.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.10. ESCO Technologies had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 11.01%. The company had revenue of $265.52 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $264.96 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.09 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.02%.

ESCO Technologies Company Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc produces and supplies engineered products and systems for industrial and commercial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Aerospace & Defense, Utility Solutions Group, and RF Test & Measurement. The Aerospace & Defense segment designs and manufactures filtration products, including hydraulic filter elements and fluid control devices used in commercial aerospace applications; filter mechanisms used in micro-propulsion devices for satellites; and custom designed filters for manned aircraft and submarines.