4,545 Shares in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) Acquired by Illumine Investment Management LLC

Illumine Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 4,545 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $605,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ESE. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 4.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,054,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $135,950,000 after acquiring an additional 49,577 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,047,741 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $135,138,000 after acquiring an additional 18,676 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its stake in ESCO Technologies by 3.3% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 438,536 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $56,563,000 after purchasing an additional 13,894 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 2.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 299,874 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $38,678,000 after buying an additional 7,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in ESCO Technologies during the third quarter valued at about $19,412,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com raised ESCO Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 20th.

ESCO Technologies Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of ESE opened at $160.68 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $141.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $134.23. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a one year low of $97.11 and a one year high of $171.28. The company has a market capitalization of $4.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.72 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.35.

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

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.20%. ESCO Technologies’s payout ratio is 7.51%.

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.