Cerity Partners LLC Buys 469 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 3.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,706 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $2,022,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies in the first quarter valued at $35,000. CX Institutional bought a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies in the first quarter valued at $36,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies in the first quarter valued at $38,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of 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 lifted its stake in shares of 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of 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 Down 0.8%

ESE opened at $196.01 on Monday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average is $186.12 and its 200 day moving average is $163.54. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $108.70 and a fifty-two week high of $198.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.98 and a beta of 1.21.

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

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

ESCO Technologies 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.