ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Raised to Buy at UBS Group

UBS Group upgraded shares of ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Free Report) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $147.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $123.00.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on ESAB in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on ESAB from $131.00 to $125.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of ESAB from an "underperform" rating to an "inline" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $122.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of ESAB from $133.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $135.75.

ESAB Trading Down 5.0 %

Shares of NYSE ESAB traded down $5.62 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $107.25. 490,209 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 270,290. The company's 50-day moving average is $121.82 and its 200-day moving average is $120.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.83, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.37. ESAB has a 52-week low of $88.54 and a 52-week high of $135.97.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.13. ESAB had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 17.43%. The business had revenue of $633.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $636.43 million. Analysts expect that ESAB will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ESAB Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.30%. ESAB's payout ratio is 7.41%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ESAB

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of ESAB during the fourth quarter worth $81,199,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ESAB in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,281,000. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of ESAB by 104.3% during the 4th quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 839,685 shares of the company's stock worth $100,712,000 after acquiring an additional 428,770 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in ESAB by 21.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,900,115 shares of the company's stock worth $202,001,000 after purchasing an additional 337,983 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in ESAB by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,097,624 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,589,000 after purchasing an additional 318,018 shares in the last quarter. 91.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.