Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Buys 11,830 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE - Free Report) by 17.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 79,516 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 11,830 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.31% of ESCO Technologies worth $9,306,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 11,529 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,349,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH lifted its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 158,157 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $18,509,000 after purchasing an additional 11,550 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 7,881 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 11,702 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,222,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 14.2% in the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 13,079 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,624 shares during the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ESE. Sidoti lowered ESCO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. StockNews.com lowered ESCO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 17th.

ESCO Technologies Price Performance

NYSE:ESE traded down $1.62 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $97.26. The company had a trading volume of 134,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,956. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $102.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $104.00. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a one year low of $89.77 and a one year high of $118.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.51 billion, a PE ratio of 27.02 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $218.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $221.44 million. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 8.59%. The business's revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. ESCO Technologies's payout ratio is presently 8.89%.

Insider Transactions at ESCO Technologies

In other news, Director Leon J. Olivier sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.26, for a total transaction of $90,234.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

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.