Jones Financial Companies Lllp Has $38,000 Stock Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 747.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 288 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $38,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ESE. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in ESCO Technologies during the third quarter worth about $19,412,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in 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 worth $135,950,000 after purchasing an additional 49,577 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 340.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,413 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $5,728,000 after purchasing an additional 34,340 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 3.3% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 438,536 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $56,563,000 after purchasing an additional 13,894 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 46.9% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 39,013 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $5,032,000 after purchasing an additional 12,461 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

ESCO Technologies Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE:ESE opened at $155.57 on Wednesday. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 12-month low of $97.11 and a 12-month high of $171.28. The stock has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 36.52 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50 day moving average of $148.79 and a 200-day moving average of $138.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

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 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, equities research analysts forecast that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark lifted their price target on ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of ESCO Technologies in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded ESCO Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th.

ESCO Technologies 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.