Two Sigma Advisers LP Sells 2,300 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Two Sigma Advisers LP lessened its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE - Free Report) by 29.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,600 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 2,300 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP's holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $746,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 340.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,413 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $5,728,000 after buying an additional 34,340 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 67.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,169 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 471 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in ESCO Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Valmark Advisers Inc. grew its stake in ESCO Technologies by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 6,779 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $903,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in ESCO Technologies by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 125,266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $16,687,000 after buying an additional 3,562 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Benchmark boosted their price target on ESCO Technologies from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded ESCO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of ESCO Technologies in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

ESE traded up $1.30 during trading on Thursday, reaching $181.56. 60,223 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 152,957. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.42 and a fifty-two week high of $185.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $164.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $152.74. The company has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.60 and a beta of 1.19.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.10. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 9.91%. The business had revenue of $265.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $264.96 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.09 earnings per share. ESCO Technologies's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. ESCO Technologies's payout ratio is presently 7.02%.

ESCO Technologies Company 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.