Vontobel Holding Ltd. Sells 580 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. reduced its holdings in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,574 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 580 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $609,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 55.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 11,516 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,485,000 after buying an additional 4,125 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 70,387 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $9,079,000 after buying an additional 5,874 shares in the last quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd purchased a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 3rd quarter worth about $942,000. Creative Planning boosted its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 53.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,043 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,682,000 after purchasing an additional 4,526 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,477 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. 95.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on ESE. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of ESCO Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 20th.

ESCO Technologies Trading Up 2.4 %

NYSE ESE opened at $167.12 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market cap of $4.31 billion, a PE ratio of 39.23 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $139.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $132.33. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 52 week low of $97.11 and a 52 week high of $168.35.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.34. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 9.91%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.51%.

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.