Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC Has $17.03 Million Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. $ESE

Key Points

• Segall Bryant & Hamill increased its ESCO Technologies stake by 21.8% in the first quarter, holding 60,523 shares worth approximately $17.03 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 95.7% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $410; JPMorgan initiated coverage with an “overweight” rating and a $420 target.
• ESCO reported quarterly EPS of $1.91, slightly beating estimates, while revenue rose 33.5% year over year to $309.34 million. The company issued fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $8.00–$8.25 and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share.

Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its stake in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE - Free Report) by 21.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 60,523 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 10,852 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC owned about 0.23% of ESCO Technologies worth $17,029,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP raised its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 842.9% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 132 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 3,140.0% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 162 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies in the second quarter valued at $39,000. 95.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on ESCO Technologies in a research report on Monday, June 15th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $420.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of ESCO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of ESCO Technologies from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (a)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, ESCO Technologies presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $410.00.

ESCO Technologies Price Performance

ESCO Technologies stock opened at $314.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $8.16 billion, a PE ratio of 26.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.09. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a one year low of $174.92 and a one year high of $362.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $322.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $292.33.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.01. ESCO Technologies had a return on equity of 12.88% and a net margin of 24.69%.The business had revenue of $309.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.88 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. ESCO Technologies's quarterly revenue was up 33.5% on a year-over-year basis. ESCO Technologies has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.050-2.150 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-8.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 8.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 2nd. ESCO Technologies's payout ratio is currently 2.69%.

ESCO Technologies Company Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc is a diversified manufacturer of engineered products and systems designed to meet customers' critical performance requirements in the test, measurement, control, and filtration of data, fluids, and gases. The company serves a wide range of end markets, including commercial aerospace, defense, industrial, medical, and communication network sectors. ESCO's solutions are tailored to environments where reliability, precision and regulatory compliance are paramount.

Operating through multiple business segments, ESCO Technologies delivers test and measurement instruments such as RF and microwave components, signal distribution systems, and integrated test enclosures that support defense and aerospace programs.

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