ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Price Target Cut to $138.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Key Points

• Stifel Nicolaus cut ESAB's price target to $138 (from $158) while keeping a "buy" rating, a level that implies roughly a 35.19% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $141.33 (seven Buy, three Hold), and shares traded at $102.08 mid-day after quarterly results showing EPS of $1.35 (beating estimates by $0.01) and revenue up 7.5% year-over-year.
• CEO Shyam Kambeyanda sold 59,404 shares for about $7.35M on Feb. 23, reducing his holdings by 37.3%, while institutional investors own roughly 91.13% of the stock.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $158.00 to $138.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price suggests a potential upside of 35.19% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on ESAB. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of ESAB from $142.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of ESAB from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of ESAB in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $146.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of ESAB in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of ESAB from $130.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $141.33.

ESAB Stock Performance

ESAB stock traded up $7.43 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $102.08. 160,197 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 537,906. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.17. ESAB has a fifty-two week low of $89.41 and a fifty-two week high of $137.42. The company has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.36. The firm's fifty day moving average is $113.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.42.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.01. ESAB had a net margin of 7.98% and a return on equity of 15.38%. The business had revenue of $687.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.28 EPS. ESAB's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that ESAB will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at ESAB

In related news, CEO Shyam Kambeyanda sold 59,404 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total transaction of $7,353,621.16. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,864 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,362,164.56. This represents a 37.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 7.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of ESAB

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESAB. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in ESAB by 29.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 51,867 shares of the company's stock worth $6,042,000 after buying an additional 11,772 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in ESAB during the first quarter worth $10,616,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in ESAB by 25.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 458,339 shares of the company's stock worth $53,396,000 after acquiring an additional 94,335 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in ESAB by 614.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 25,312 shares of the company's stock worth $3,051,000 after acquiring an additional 21,768 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in ESAB by 109.4% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 333 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. 91.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ESAB Company Profile

ESAB Corporation is a global leader in welding, cutting and gas control technologies, offering a comprehensive portfolio of equipment, consumables and automation solutions. The company's products include welding power sources, cutting machines, torches, electrodes, filler metals and gas regulating equipment designed to meet the needs of diverse industries. ESAB serves sectors such as construction, shipbuilding, automotive, energy, infrastructure and manufacturing, providing both standard and customized solutions to enhance productivity and quality in metal fabrication and processing.

Founded in 1904 by Swedish inventor Oscar Kjellberg, ESAB pioneered the development of coated welding electrodes, laying the groundwork for modern welding practices.

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