Advisors Asset Management Inc. Purchases 7,161 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. $ESE

Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 49.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,516 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 7,161 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. owned 0.08% of ESCO Technologies worth $4,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ESE. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 94.9% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 185,928 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $35,674,000 after acquiring an additional 90,528 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in ESCO Technologies by 401.5% in the 2nd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,011 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 1,610 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 73,853 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $14,170,000 after purchasing an additional 1,011 shares during the period. AXQ Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $253,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 19.8% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,103 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $4,241,000 after purchasing an additional 3,660 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ESE. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.50.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

ESCO Technologies stock opened at $212.99 on Friday. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.17 and a 12-month high of $229.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $215.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $199.54. The stock has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 47.97 and a beta of 1.25.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $286.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $306.39 million. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 11.19%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 28.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. ESCO Technologies has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.350 EPS. FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-7.800 EPS. As a group, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is 2.77%.

Insider Transactions at ESCO Technologies

In other news, CEO Bryan H. Sayler sold 9,382 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $2,064,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 20,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,544,100. This represents a 31.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Christopher L. Tucker sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.15, for a total value of $1,100,750.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 20,121 shares in the company, valued at $4,429,638.15. This represents a 19.90% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 21,699 shares of company stock valued at $4,778,734 over the last quarter. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.