JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Stock Price

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) had its price objective increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $125.00 to $138.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

ESAB has been the topic of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of ESAB from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of ESAB from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $141.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Roth Capital began coverage on ESAB in a report on Friday, September 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Loop Capital raised ESAB from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $140.00 in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of ESAB in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ESAB presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.89.

ESAB Price Performance

ESAB stock opened at $120.30 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $113.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.51. ESAB has a 1 year low of $100.17 and a 1 year high of $135.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.95.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.02. ESAB had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $715.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $670.80 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.32 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that ESAB will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESAB Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. ESAB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.57%.

Insider Transactions at ESAB

In other ESAB news, insider Olivier Biebuyck sold 1,440 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.49, for a total value of $192,225.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 14,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,000,881.61. This trade represents a 8.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rhonda L. Jordan sold 4,067 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.05, for a total value of $459,774.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESAB

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in ESAB during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in ESAB by 204.8% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 320 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in ESAB by 109.4% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of ESAB by 706.7% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of ESAB by 1,128.9% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 467 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. 91.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ESAB

ESAB Corporation engages in the formulation, development, manufacture, and supply of consumable products and equipment for use in cutting, joining, automated welding, and gas control equipment. Its comprehensive range of welding consumables includes electrodes, cored and solid wires, and fluxes using a range of specialty and other materials; and cutting consumables comprising electrodes, nozzles, shields, and tips.