Corton Capital Inc. Makes New Investment in ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB)

Key Points

• Corton Capital Inc. has made a new investment of $256,000 in ESAB Corporation, acquiring 2,201 shares, which constitutes approximately 0.8% of its total holdings.
• ESAB reported better-than-expected earnings, with $1.25 earnings per share, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.18, and quarterly revenue of $678.14 million.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend from $0.08 to $0.10, reflecting a dividend yield of 0.30% and a payout ratio of 9.01%.

Corton Capital Inc. bought a new stake in ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,201 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $256,000. ESAB accounts for about 0.8% of Corton Capital Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ESAB by 204.8% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 320 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in ESAB during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in ESAB by 1,128.9% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 467 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 429 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in ESAB by 323.8% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 534 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 408 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its position in ESAB by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 682 shares of the company's stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. 91.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ESAB Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE ESAB traded down $1.50 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $131.78. The stock had a trading volume of 515,203 shares, compared to its average volume of 236,163. The firm has a market cap of $7.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.26. ESAB Corporation has a twelve month low of $88.54 and a twelve month high of $135.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.91. The company's 50 day moving average price is $124.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.28.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $678.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $633.66 million. ESAB had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 16.98%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.20 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ESAB Corporation will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

ESAB Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.30%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. This is an increase from ESAB's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. ESAB's payout ratio is presently 9.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Olivier Biebuyck sold 1,417 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.15, for a total transaction of $185,839.55. Following the transaction, the insider owned 14,989 shares in the company, valued at $1,965,807.35. The trade was a 8.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rhonda L. Jordan sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.42, for a total transaction of $189,630.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESAB has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of ESAB from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $123.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of ESAB from $126.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Robert W. Baird set a $143.00 target price on shares of ESAB in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ESAB has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $138.89.

ESAB Profile

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.