Legato Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Legato Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE - Free Report) by 23.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,990 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 3,339 shares during the quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC's holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $1,749,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 215.4% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,813 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 5,336 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 2,919 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $389,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,038 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies in the 4th quarter valued at about $323,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. boosted its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 1,839 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. 95.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ESE traded up $3.14 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $191.36. The stock had a trading volume of 98,864 shares, compared to its average volume of 166,866. The firm has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.96 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $108.70 and a fifty-two week high of $198.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $186.95 and a 200-day moving average of $165.10.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $265.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $264.96 million. ESCO Technologies had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 11.01%. The firm's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.09 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 2nd. ESCO Technologies's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Benchmark upped their target price on ESCO Technologies from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

ESCO Technologies Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc produces and supplies engineered products and systems for industrial and commercial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Aerospace & Defense, Utility Solutions Group, and RF Test & Measurement. The Aerospace & Defense segment designs and manufactures filtration products, including hydraulic filter elements and fluid control devices used in commercial aerospace applications; filter mechanisms used in micro-propulsion devices for satellites; and custom designed filters for manned aircraft and submarines.