ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB) Receives $136.67 Average PT from Brokerages

ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $137.22.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $143.00 price objective on shares of ESAB in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on ESAB from $133.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on ESAB from $109.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group raised ESAB from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $123.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on ESAB from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th.

ESAB Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ESAB traded down $1.71 during trading on Monday, hitting $123.20. The stock had a trading volume of 171,768 shares, compared to its average volume of 279,553. ESAB has a 12-month low of $88.54 and a 12-month high of $135.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $119.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.44.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.07. ESAB had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 17.43%. The company had revenue of $678.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $633.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.20 EPS. ESAB's quarterly revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that ESAB will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESAB Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This is a boost from ESAB's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.32%. ESAB's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.01%.

Insider Activity at ESAB

In other news, insider Olivier Biebuyck sold 1,417 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.15, for a total transaction of $185,839.55. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 14,989 shares in the company, valued at $1,965,807.35. This trade represents a 8.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 7.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESAB

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Durable Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of ESAB during the first quarter worth about $114,067,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in ESAB in the 4th quarter worth about $81,199,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in ESAB by 42.0% during the 1st quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,929,099 shares of the company's stock worth $224,740,000 after buying an additional 570,895 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in ESAB by 101.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 880,729 shares of the company's stock worth $102,605,000 after buying an additional 443,574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ESAB during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,281,000. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ESAB

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.