Essentra (LON:ESNT) Stock Crosses Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Essentra plc (LON:ESNT - Get Free Report) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 127.48 ($1.70) and traded as low as GBX 92.50 ($1.23). Essentra shares last traded at GBX 93.29 ($1.24), with a volume of 516,033 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Berenberg Bank reiterated a "buy" rating and set a GBX 170 ($2.27) target price on shares of Essentra in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th.

Essentra Price Performance

The company's 50-day simple moving average is GBX 103.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 125.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 51.89, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 1.97. The company has a market capitalization of £258.98 million, a PE ratio of 74.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 1.18.

Essentra (LON:ESNT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The company reported GBX 8.50 ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Essentra had a return on equity of 1.28% and a net margin of 1.13%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Essentra plc will post 524.137931 earnings per share for the current year.

Essentra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of GBX 1.55 ($0.02) per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This is an increase from Essentra's previous dividend of $1.25. This represents a dividend yield of 1.41%. Essentra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 329.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essentra

In related news, insider Steve Good purchased 35,000 shares of Essentra stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 109 ($1.45) per share, for a total transaction of £38,150 ($50,832.78). Also, insider Rowan Baker purchased 10,036 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 104 ($1.39) per share, for a total transaction of £10,437.44 ($13,907.32). 0.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Essentra

Essentra plc is a leading global provider of essential components and solutions, focusing on the manufacture and distribution of plastic injection moulded, vinyl dip moulded and metal items. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, Essentra's global network extends to 28 countries worldwide and includes c.3,000 employees, 14 manufacturing facilities, 26 distribution centres and 37 sales & service centres serving c.64,000 customers with a rapid supply of low cost but essential products for a variety of applications in industries such as equipment manufacturing, automotive, fabrication, electronics, medical and renewable energy.