JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Stock Price

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $135.00 to $133.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective suggests a potential upside of 7.63% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research firms have also commented on ESAB. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $144.00 price target (up from $138.00) on shares of ESAB in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of ESAB from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Evercore ISI lowered shares of ESAB from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $102.00 to $122.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on ESAB in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $160.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on ESAB from $131.00 to $125.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ESAB currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $133.14.

ESAB Stock Up 1.7 %

ESAB stock traded up $2.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $123.58. 467,210 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 229,650. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $122.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.61, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.36. ESAB has a 1 year low of $88.54 and a 1 year 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $633.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.43 million. ESAB had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 9.66%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ESAB will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESAB

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in ESAB during the 4th quarter valued at about $81,199,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of ESAB during the fourth quarter worth about $52,281,000. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC boosted its position in ESAB by 104.3% in the fourth quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 839,685 shares of the company's stock valued at $100,712,000 after buying an additional 428,770 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in ESAB by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,900,115 shares of the company's stock worth $202,001,000 after buying an additional 337,983 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in ESAB by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,097,624 shares of the company's stock worth $251,589,000 after buying an additional 318,018 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.13% of the company's stock.

ESAB Company Profile

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.