XTX Topco Ltd Grows Stock Position in ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB)

XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB) by 194.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,456 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,260 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd’s holdings in ESAB were worth $610,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ESAB. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its stake in ESAB by 302.6% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in ESAB during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in ESAB by 57.9% during the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 420 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in ESAB during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in ESAB during the second quarter worth about $42,000. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ESAB Stock Performance

Shares of ESAB opened at $105.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.42. ESAB Co. has a 52 week low of $61.43 and a 52 week high of $114.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $99.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.53.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $707.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $686.75 million. ESAB had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 9.06%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.21 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that ESAB Co. will post 4.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESAB Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. ESAB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ESAB shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on ESAB from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on ESAB from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on ESAB from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 5th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on ESAB in a report on Thursday, June 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on ESAB from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $108.57.

ESAB Profile

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.