ESAB Corporation $ESAB Stock Position Reduced by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. has significantly reduced its stock holdings in ESAB Corporation by 48.1% during the first quarter, now owning only 3,544 shares valued at $413,000.
• Various hedge funds have shown interest in ESAB, with Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management and Farther Finance Advisors LLC increasing their positions by 706.7% and 1,128.9% respectively during the same period.
• ESAB's stock has recorded minor gains, up 1.3% with a recent trading price of $117.94, while its market cap stands at $7.16 billion.

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB - Free Report) by 48.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,544 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,289 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.'s holdings in ESAB were worth $413,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in ESAB by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,387,626 shares of the company's stock valued at $278,158,000 after acquiring an additional 185,058 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of ESAB by 101.5% in 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 during the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of ESAB by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 332,015 shares of the company's stock worth $38,680,000 after buying an additional 25,485 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of ESAB in the 1st quarter worth about $24,511,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of ESAB by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 167,009 shares of the company's stock worth $20,031,000 after buying an additional 20,430 shares during the last quarter. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ESAB. Loop Capital upgraded shares of ESAB from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of ESAB from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Roth Capital began coverage on shares of ESAB in a research report on Friday, September 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of ESAB from $144.00 to $142.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of ESAB from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ESAB presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $141.44.

ESAB Price Performance

ESAB stock traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $113.03. 512,919 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 384,101. The firm has a market cap of $6.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $121.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.85. ESAB Corporation has a 1-year low of $95.91 and a 1-year high of $135.97.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $715.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $670.80 million. ESAB had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 16.32%. ESAB's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.32 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that ESAB Corporation will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Rhonda L. Jordan sold 4,067 shares of ESAB stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.05, for a total value of $459,774.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Olivier Biebuyck sold 1,440 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.49, for a total transaction of $192,225.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 14,989 shares in the company, valued at $2,000,881.61. The trade was a 8.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.