ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Given New $131.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $130.00 to $131.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "hold" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price objective suggests a potential upside of 5.80% from the stock's current price.

ESAB has been the topic of several other research reports. Loop Capital boosted their price target on ESAB from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $144.00 price objective (up from $138.00) on shares of ESAB in a report on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI lowered ESAB from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $102.00 to $122.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on ESAB from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of ESAB in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $133.57.

ESAB Price Performance

Shares of ESAB stock traded up $0.04 on Friday, hitting $123.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 213,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 167,407. ESAB has a 52-week low of $85.79 and a 52-week high of $135.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $124.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.02. The company has a market capitalization of $7.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.37.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.13. ESAB had a return on equity of 17.27% and a net margin of 9.47%. The business had revenue of $673.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $620.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that ESAB will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Rhonda L. Jordan sold 4,254 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.03, for a total transaction of $531,877.62. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Shyam Kambeyanda sold 59,120 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.96, for a total transaction of $7,269,395.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,902 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,627,789.92. This represents a 52.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 68,418 shares of company stock valued at $8,431,773. Company insiders own 7.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of ESAB

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ESAB in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in ESAB by 871.0% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 301 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of ESAB by 55.9% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 410 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of ESAB by 629.8% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of ESAB by 12,140.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the company's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.13% of the company's stock.

About ESAB

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.