ESCO Technologies Inc. $ESE Shares Purchased by Advisors Asset Management Inc.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 34.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,965 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 7,449 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of ESCO Technologies worth $6,115,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESE. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 9.7% during the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 545 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. boosted its stake in ESCO Technologies by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,046 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 786 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 118.5% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 142 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ESE shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of ESCO Technologies from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research raised ESCO Technologies to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Wall Street Zen raised ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, CJS Securities upgraded ESCO Technologies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.50.

ESCO Technologies Price Performance

Shares of ESCO Technologies stock opened at $272.50 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.06 billion, a PE ratio of 23.19 and a beta of 1.22. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a twelve month low of $134.78 and a twelve month high of $291.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $217.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.77.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.32. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 25.28% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The firm had revenue of $289.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $289.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. ESCO Technologies has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.750-1.850 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 7.900-8.15 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Bryan H. Sayler sold 9,382 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $2,064,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 20,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,544,100. This trade represents a 31.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Vinod M. Khilnani sold 3,000 shares of ESCO Technologies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.99, for a total transaction of $653,970.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,468 shares in the company, valued at $4,461,819.32. This trade represents a 12.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 21,699 shares of company stock worth $4,778,734 in the last quarter. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

ESCO Technologies Company Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc is a diversified manufacturer of engineered products and systems designed to meet customers’ critical performance requirements in the test, measurement, control, and filtration of data, fluids, and gases. The company serves a wide range of end markets, including commercial aerospace, defense, industrial, medical, and communication network sectors. ESCO’s solutions are tailored to environments where reliability, precision and regulatory compliance are paramount.

Operating through multiple business segments, ESCO Technologies delivers test and measurement instruments such as RF and microwave components, signal distribution systems, and integrated test enclosures that support defense and aerospace programs.