F M Investments LLC Trims Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

F M Investments LLC lowered its position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE - Free Report) by 66.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,769 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 60,088 shares during the period. F M Investments LLC owned approximately 0.12% of ESCO Technologies worth $3,966,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in ESCO Technologies by 747.1% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 288 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in ESCO Technologies by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 305 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 378.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 565 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 21.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 571 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.70% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com cut shares of ESCO Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Benchmark raised their price target on shares of ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th.

ESCO Technologies Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE ESE traded down $2.40 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $150.40. The stock had a trading volume of 33,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,745. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a twelve month low of $97.11 and a twelve month high of $171.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.04. The company's 50 day moving average price is $158.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.01. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.31 and a beta of 1.07.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.34. ESCO Technologies had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 10.44%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 EPS for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.21%. ESCO Technologies's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.51%.

ESCO Technologies 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.