ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Stephens lifted their target price on ESCO Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th.

ESCO Technologies Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of ESE opened at $134.01 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.01 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.31. ESCO Technologies has a 1 year low of $96.69 and a 1 year high of $154.00. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $139.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $128.07.

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.12%.

Institutional Trading of ESCO Technologies

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Heritage Family Offices LLP grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 1,958 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 21.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 571 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,917 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,608,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 340.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,413 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $5,728,000 after buying an additional 34,340 shares during the period. Finally, First National Bank of Omaha raised its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. First National Bank of Omaha now owns 5,343 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $689,000 after buying an additional 1,095 shares during the period. 95.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ESCO Technologies

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.